Steamed Black Perigord Truffles (Tuber melanosporum) with Potatoes

Truffles are expensive, but if used effectively that money can go a long way. A whole egg-size black truffle, costing sixty to a hundred dollars, will provide six to eight people with a special-occasion feast they will never forget. And anyway, as Colette says in Portraits et paysage, “If you love her, pay her ransom regally, or leave her alone.”

Truffles are best when fresh, but unlike anything else (except pastry, meat and fish essences, and ice cream) the black ones do ver