Pasta with asparagus and black truffle is a typical dish of Umbrian cuisine. There is talk of a cuisine whose roots go back to the civilization of the Umbrians and the Romans. Furthermore, there is a long tradition of dishes that are not always poor or popular. Little influenced by the neighboring regions, it is a cuisine mainly of meat and products of the earth.
In fact, the Umbrian Black Truffle is also used. This truffle is a prevalent quality present in Umbria and is known as the truffle of Norcia and Spoleto.
Penne with asparagus and truffle (classic recipe)
Pasta with asparagus and black truffle is a simple dish to prepare. As for the recipe, we start by cleaning 300 grams of asparagus and cutting them into small pieces. Clean and peel the asparagus stem with a potato peeler.
Then wash and chop a clover. Then pour the asparagus into boiling water and cook for about 10 minutes. Then drain them al dente and let them cool. Cook 300 grams of pasta and then drain it. Set aside a ladle of the cooking water that you will need later. Clean two Norcia truffles from 50 grams with a toothbrush and slice them. Then take a saucepan and heat 3 spoons of olive oil. Then pour the ladle of water left aside, the truffles, the asparagus and the pasta. Let it all flavor for a couple of minutes over low heat, then add salt and pepper and the chervil.
How do you clean the truffle?
When dealing with a truffle-based recipe, it is a good idea to understand how to clean it in order to cook it at its best. Those who market truffles sell them already cleaned, even if only superficially. These are not only aesthetic issues, but it is also a reason for transparency.
First of all, the land around the truffle has a weight, which affects the price of the truffle. But even more is used to verify the quality of the truffle you are buying. Cleaning takes place in the first place remembering that the same rule applies to truffles as is recommended for mushrooms. That is, use a drizzle of cold water. Truffles are very delicate and the cleaning process must be done with very delicacy. So, to clean the truffle, use a medium-hard bristle brush (like a toothbrush for example). Under a trickle of cold tap water, pass a knife with rounded tip.
Penne with asparagus and truffle (variant)
As an alternative to truffles you can try the truffle cream. For this variant of the recipe, bring a pot of salted water to a boil and, in the same way, the pasta is cooked al dente. In the meantime that the pasta is cooking, let the steamed asparagus tips boil for a few minutes. Then transfer them to a pan with a little oil and salt to make them flavor. Then put aside in a small bowl for the truffle cream and add a spoonful of the pasta cooking water. Pour the contents of the bowl into the pan with the asparagus tips and mix. Then drain the pasta and add it to the truffle cream with asparagus. Equally you have to mix well and then put on plates. Finally, season with ground black pepper and a drizzle of oil. In this way you will have an equally tasty dish with a truffle flavor. All that remains is to wish you Buon appetito!
