Truffle Salt: What’s Really in It, How It Tastes and How to Use It

How much truffle is in truffle salt? Between 1% and 5% on the labels that state a figure, and three of the four labels we checked list a truffle flavoring next to it. The rest of the jar is mostly sea salt, and the truffle itself is there as little dried bits, almost always black summer truffle. It’s a finishing salt. A pinch over eggs, fries, popcorn or pasta gets you truffle aroma for a fraction of what fresh truffle costs.

At a glance

What’s in it: labels side by side

Two things jump out. First, the truffle is a small slice of the jar: between 1% and 5% by the labels’ own figures. Second, three of the four list a flavoring next to the truffle. The seller of the Casina Rossa salt calls it “a touch of truffle essence for balance and longevity.”¹ None of the labels says what that flavoring is made of. If you want a salt with no added flavoring, the ingredient list is the only way to tell.

Flavor and the compounds behind it

Truffle salt smells earthy, musky and a little garlicky, and the salt tastes like salt. We didn’t find a published analysis of truffle salt’s aroma. The closest thing is a 2017 study that compared raw truffles, truffle sauces, and natural and artificial truffle-flavored oils, made from or imitating white (Tuber magnatum), black winter (T. melanosporum) and black summer (T. aestivum) truffles.⁶ Its abstract reports:

• Both natural and artificial truffle oils were dominated by bis(methylthio)methane, a sulfur compound typical of white truffle, even in most of the oils sold as black truffle.
• That compound was missing or low in the black truffles tested, which were high in 1-octen-3-ol instead.
• Neither the natural nor the artificial oils did a good job of copying the aroma of the truffle species examined.

That study didn’t test salts, so it can’t tell you what’s in any truffle salt’s flavoring.

Where truffle salt comes from

Truffles are prized fungi that live in partnership with the roots of trees like oaks, holm oaks and hazelnuts. Growers now cultivate them using mycorrhizal plants.

Truffle salt as a packaged product is pretty new. Casina Rossa, a family-run food business in Abruzzo, Italy, made one of the early ones. The Austin Chronicle reviewed its “Truffle & Salt” in September 2006, describing medium-grain sea salt with similar-sized flecks of black truffle, and reported that it had been a condiment winner at the 2005 NASFT Product Awards Competition.⁷ So it was on the market by 2005. We couldn’t find out who sold truffle salt first. The seller says the Casina Rossa truffle is from Abruzzo;¹ the salt is only described as Italian.

These products come wrapped in a lot of truffle history: ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans, a medieval church ban, Louis XIV, wartime declines. We couldn’t trace any of it to a reliable source, so we’ve left it out.

How to use it

Treat it as a finishing salt and add it at the table or just before serving. America’s Test Kitchen recommends sea salts for finishing,⁸ and adding truffle salt at the end keeps the aroma front and center. Sellers suggest:

• fries, popcorn, filet mignon, pasta, roasted vegetables and eggs (igourmet, for Casina Rossa)¹
• over mushroom risotto, with peeled quail’s eggs, or on butter served with bread (Sous Chef, for Marini Tartufi)²

It’s also good on mild, fatty foods where a little aroma goes a long way: scrambled eggs, buttered potatoes, avocado toast, risotto, white pizza, popcorn and hummus. Start with a small pinch. It’s still mostly salt.

Buying and storage

Check the ingredient list for the truffle species, the truffle percentage and whether there’s added flavoring. Price won’t tell you much. In 2006 the Austin Chronicle paid $19-plus for a 3.5-ounce jar of Casina Rossa,⁷ and prices today are all over the place. No regulator publishes a shelf life for truffle salt. Keep the jar tightly closed, away from heat and light, and go by smell: once the aroma fades, it’s just salt.

Safety and sodium

Truffle salt is mostly sea salt, and most sea salts are about 40% sodium, same as table salt.⁴ The FDA’s Daily Value for sodium is less than 2,300 mg a day,⁹ and the World Health Organization advises adults to stay under 2,000 mg a day, naming raised blood pressure as the main health effect of high-sodium diets.¹⁰ Specialty salts like sea salt usually aren’t iodized.¹¹ There’s too little truffle in it to add any meaningful nutrients, so we make no health claims for it.

Substitutes and related pages

Need a stand-in? See truffle salt substitutes. Other finishing salts: fleur de sel, Maldon sea salt, smoked sea salt and black lava salt. Base salts: sea salt and table salt. For ideas, try spices for scrambled eggs, seasonings for fries and mushroom spices.