Best Ways To Cook Asparagus

I’ve recently become enamored with asparagus.  At less than four calories per spear, it’s low in calories, and is also one of the best sources of folic acid.  Five spears gives you 60% of the RDA of folic acid, 3 grams of fiber and 3 grams of protein.  It has officially become one of my favorite vegetables, and I’ve been looking for the best ways to cook asparagus.

Best Ways To Cook Asparagus

As a kid growing up, asparagus wasn’t really a big part of my diet.  So, the little experience I had with this vegetable was limited to the crummy little canned spears we got with the occasional school lunch.  Not good.

My first positive experience with asparagus actually came during a trip to Germany.  I happened to be near Cologne during the harvesting season, and the local restaurants were serving seasonal dishes with white asparagus.  If you’ve never seen it, white asparagus is about three times larger than standard green asparagus.  This was a new one on me, and the locals explained it was bleached by covering the fields with black tarp, which turned the asparagus white and allowed it to continue growing.  Very tasty.

I had abandoned the vegetable for several years after that, but recently I found some good looking green asparagus at a local farmers market and decided to make a purchase.  We cooked it by standard steaming for about 10-minutes, and that gave it a very nice texture.  Not only that, but it was very filling.  That started me on a hunt for the best ways too cook asparagus.

After much experimenting, I’ve come to two preferred cooking methods.  In both cases, the most important step is to begin by breaking the end off the asparagus spear and discarding it.  This part is inedible.  The remainder is then cut into 1-inch sections, with the tips separated from the end of the spear.  The end of the spear (not the tip) require slightly longer cooking times as they are tougher.

Blanching

Blanching is the process of boiling the asparagus for a short period of time and then quenching in ice water.  This keeps your vegetable crispy for use in salads or as a crunchy side item for meals.  To do this, get a pot of water boiling and toss in the ends of the spears.  Boil for 2 minutes and then toss in the remaining uncooked portion of the spears.  Boil for another 5 minutes and then scoop out vegetables and drop them immediately in the ice water bath.  Pour off the water enjoy!

Stir-Fry

I enjoy this mixed with red bell peppers.  Cut your asparagus up as before, along with any accompanying vegetables.  In a large frying pan (or wok) add a small amount of virgin olive oil and heat on medium high.  Toss in the stalk end of the asparagus and stir fry for 2-3 minutes.  Add the remaining vegetables and stir fry to a light golden brown.  Serve immediately.

These are my two favorite methods for cooking asparagus.  Let me know how you like them, and if you’ve got a preferred method for cooking this healthy vegetable, feel free to share!

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