Recipe: Vegetable "paper" - truffle parsnip

bag it

I made this the other day on a bit of a whim.  I was trying to come up with a nice modern fall garnish.  Parsnips certainly fit the bill but it needed something extra and truffle is always a nice addition to parsnip.  I've made parsnip chips a lot of times, but I thought making a paper would be a bit more interesting as you can break it into shards.  A paper would also allow me to fully develop the flavour within the mix itself.  I considered using truffle salt, but in this case didn't want to stray from the clean visual with the black speckles.  Because I was using truffle oil, I strayed from the usual 5% egg white ratio to make sure I got a crisp result.  I also lowered the dehydration temperature as I noticed early on in the process that 140F / 60C could potentially caramelize the sugars in the parsnip more than I wanted.  The end result was a delicious and crisp product with a nice tan.  If some of the previous posts have inspired you to modernize a holiday meal with sous-vide turkey, this would be a great way to get some parsnip on the plate.

puree it

You will need:

500g / 17.6oz          parsnip (peeled and chopped)

60ml / 1/4C             truffle oil

60ml / 1/4C             cream

60g / 2.1oz              egg white

to taste                    kosher salt

as needed                water

Method:

spread it and dry it

 - peel and chop the parsnip

 - put the parsnip in a vacuum bag with the truffle oil and a pinch of salt and seal tight

 - steam or submerge the bag in boiling water until very soft (45 minutes)

 - empty the contents of the bag while still hot into a blender

 - add the cream and just enough water to get a rough puree

 - add the egg white and puree completely smooth

 - add any more seasoning to taste

 - spray a silicone mat with pan spray

flip it and dry it some more

 - spread the puree evenly over the mat - don't worry about slight ripples, they will dehydrate out

 - set a wood warmer or dehydrator to 130F / 54C

 - let the puree dry out several hours

 - when the puree is at the "leather" stage, flip it onto a sheet of paper and peel off the silicone mat

 - transfer the leather on the paper back onto the tray and return to the warmer to fully dehydrate

 - remove the paper and let it cool to room temperature and crisp up

 - break off shards and serve