Step Away From the Truffle Oil and Use This Instead

Food trends come and go, but one that has held on, much to my disappointment, is food that has been “truffled.” Truffle fries or potato chips, truffle pizza, truffle mayo, and (unfortunately) much, much more. 

While many of us have moved on, just as many haven’t, and I find myself cringing when I spot something truffle-heavy on a menu. And it’s not because I don’t love truffles. If I had the means to shave *fresh* truffles over my pasta or french fries on the regular, I would. But, the bulk of these truffled items are made using truffle oil, and that’s a hard pass for me.

What Is Truffle Oil, Actually?

Basic truffle oil doesn’t actually contain real truffles. Not a single one. Instead, truffle oil is flavored with a chemical compound called 2,4-dithiapentane that is supposed to mimic the scent of Italian truffles at an intense level. Producers then slap “truffle essence” or “natural” on the bottle. The result is something that’s overtly umami and frankly, fake-tasting, because it’s just synthetic flavoring. 

There is a better way. Put down the bottle of  truffle oil and instead consider the powerhouse of true umami: mushroom powder. This modest ingredient delivers just as much savory, umami flavor in a more authentic way, but without the price tag of freshly foraged truffles. 

What Is Mushroom Powder?

Mushroom powder is simply mushrooms that have been dehydrated and ground into a powder. Drying mushrooms concentrates their umaminess, resulting in a powder that’s deeply savory and earthy in flavor. Any variety of mushrooms can be used, though shiitake and porcini are two of the more common varieties used.  You can also find mushroom powder spice blends, which combine mushroom powder with salt and other spices. These seasoning blends are a one-stop-shop in a way, delivering rounded savory, salty flavor, while straight-up mushroom powder allows you to control the level of salt in your dish and not let other spices get in the way of the mushroom’s flavor.

How to Make Homemade Mushroom Powder

While it’s easy enough to buy mushroom powder, it’s arguably just as easy to make it yourself. 

To make 1/4 cup mushroom powder: place 1 ounce dried mushrooms, such as porcini, in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment and blend into a fine powder. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 months. 

Homemade mushroom powder is undoubtedly fresher than the store-bought stuff, which means it’s even more flavorful. Making it yourself is also a great way to use up dried mushrooms you might have forgotten about in your pantry and you can even have fun experimenting with combining different types of dried mushrooms to create your own unique mushroom powder blend.

How to Use Mushroom Powder

The possibilities for using mushroom powder are near endless, but here are a few great starter ideas:

• Sprinkle it on all your favorite vegetables, including potatoes, before roasting.
• Stir it into pasta sauces, soups, and stews.
• Mix it with softened butter to make a compound butter to top steak, chicken, or fish.
• Dust freshly popped popcorn with it.
• Use it when seasoning ground meat for burgers, meatballs, and meatloaf.
• Whisk it into eggs before cooking to a soft scramble.