What is "truffle oil"

n. A cooking ingredient consisting of flavorless oil infused with truffle.

Truffle oil is a modern culinary ingredient, used to impart the flavor and aroma of truffles to a dish.

Most truffle oils are not made from actual truffles. Instead they are a synthetic product that combines a thioether ( 2,4-dithiapentane), one of numerous aromas or odorants found in truffles, with an oil base. As with pure olive oils, these range from clear to cloudy, and yellow to green.

Truffle oil is commonly used to make "truffle fries," which feature French fries tossed in truffle oil and sometimes other ingredients. Some will incorporate truffle oil into pasta dishes and whipped dishes such as mashed potatoes or deviled eggs. Truffle oil may be incorporated into a pizza, as well. Truffle oil, in fact, may be incorporated into any dish if one wishes.

Truffle oil, available in all seasons and steady in price, is popular with some chefs (and some diners) because it is much less expensive than actual truffles, while possessing a related flavor and aroma. The emergence and growth of truffle oil has led to an increase in the availability of foods claiming to be made with or flavored with truffles, in an era when the price of truffles has pushed them out of reach for most diners.