Carne Cruda all'Albese con Tartufo Bianco
Piedmont — Alba, Langhe
Alba's steak tartare — raw Fassona beef (Piedmont's lean indigenous breed), hand-chopped to a coarse mince, dressed with lemon juice, extra-virgin olive oil, salt, white pepper, and shavings of fresh Tartufo Bianco d'Alba (White Alba truffle) when in season. Nothing else. The Fassona is not the same as standard beef; it has less intramuscular fat, more protein, and a distinctive sweet, clean flavour that makes it the only appropriate beef for eating raw in this preparation. The truffle is not a garnish — it is co-equal with the beef.