“Ask Matt Caputo” is an ongoing feature where Matt answers commonly asked questions from the market. This week, he discusses best practices for storing fresh truffles.
Question:
What’s the best way to store fresh truffles? I’ve heard that you can clean and wrap each truffle individually in a fresh sheet of paper towel. I’ve also been told you can store them in rice. What would you suggest?
Answer:
Do not store in rice. It will speed spoilage and suck a lot of flavor out of the truffle.
The fresh paper towel method is great. The goal is finding a balance between truffles that are too dry or too wet, so nest your truffles in dry paper towels and store them in a clean, airtight container. I am careful not to use too much paper towel as it will also suck up some aroma. Change paper towels only as often as necessary, basically when the paper towel becomes damp enough to risk getting the truffles wet.
Another thing to keep in mind is that mold showing up does not mean you need to toss them out. It means they are still alive, and it can easily be brushed off with a soft, dry kitchen brush (or even a toothbrush).
Truffles are only “bad” when they become wet, squishy or even slimy which will usually be associated with a smell akin to a food service dumpster in the summer. Truffles like that should be removed from the other truffles and be discarded before the rot spreads. On the other hand, truffles can get too dry and lose most or even all of their aroma. When dry, they can still be used but simply won’t be as potent.
– Matt Caputo
Disclaimer: While Matt Caputo is a Certified Cheese Professional and specialty food fanatic, he is not a medical professional, doctor, or certified nutritionist. Please consult with your doctor or other qualified health care professional before making any healthcare decisions, diagnostics or treatment decisions based on Matt’s answers.
It’s been twenty years since Tony Caputo opened the doors here at our flagship location in downtown Salt Lake City, in a neighborhood with a rich history of Greek and Italian culture. Over the years, we’ve experienced the many ups and downs of small business ownership, but we’re proud to hear from our customers how much we mean to Salt Lake’s thriving food scene. We’ve done so by remaining committed to our deep, abiding love for great food, and sharing that love with the enthusiastic community we’re a part of. As we looked back at the last twenty years and contemplated the road ahead, we decided it was time to breathe new life into the Caputo’s brand with a fresh new look.
Inspired by the art of Utah artist Dan Christofferson, whose distinct style is rooted in symbolism and bold graphics, we began a further conversation about the Caputo’s brand and asked Dan to create a new look that seamlessly integrates our history and motivations with our vision for what lies ahead. Central to this new look is the three-pointed crown. The crown is a powerful icon that represents our core philosophy, with its three points embodying the past, present, and future of Caputo’s. These three pillars serve as symbols of our heritage, our expertise, and our trailblazing spirit.
Those early sensory experiences inspire a question we ask ourselves all the time: what is it that gives Old World flavors their particular allure? We call it terroir. It’s that special sense of place found in the aromas, the textures, and the tastes that says unabashedly: “this comes from somewhere.” Not from a factory, not from a lab, but from the land. Today, it’s our mission to champion those products with deep ties to the unique places they come from, whether it’s Utah farmstead goat cheese or Venezuelan single origin chocolate, because those special products tell the stories of where they come from with every mouth-watering bite.
We know that food is much more than mere sustenance; culinary traditions help make up the fabric of our various cultures and upbringings, and food has always been an essential part of the Caputo family. After coming to the United States from Greece and Italy, the Caputos owned and operated a small market on Salt Lake’s west side, which happened to be home to Utah’s very first refrigerated deli case. One could say that my dad’s visits to that little market as a kid, where he would get treats from his aunts who kept shop, served as the original spark of what would eventually become our beloved market & deli.
