How To Cook Asparagus
Tips On How To Cook Asparagus
Learning how to cook asparagus is not difficult, but there are a few things you should know, in order to get it right. Two basic questions are: how much? and for how long? Get both of these right and you'll have a delicious dish, without going through too much fuss or bother. Let's deal with “how much” first.
The most tender part of the asparagus stalk is the tip. In fact, tips can be eaten raw, either as snacks, or in salads. As you progress towards the bottom of the stalk, the asparagus becomes less tender, and at the base of the stalk, which is often a white or pinkish-white color, the stalk begins to take on a woody characteristic. Since we usually don't care for woody things in our diet, you bend the stalk, and the woody part should snap off. The woody base is discarded, and now you have your answer to how much of the stalk you can save for cooking.
The lazy man's (or woman's) answer for how long to cook asparagus, is to put it in a pot and let it boil for awhile. That approach will certainly give you cooked asparagus, but we're not talking about potatoes here. Asparagus, like many other vegetable, carrots as one example, are best eaten when they still have some crispness. It doesn't take much time in boiling water to remove the crispness, along with nutrients and some of the flavor. If overcooked, which is not difficult to do, you end up with a stringy mush.
The proper way to cook asparagus is through steaming. The stalks are set upright in a bundle, with the lower portion of the stalks in boiling water, and the upper portion, especially the tips, out of the water. An asparagus steamer is often used. This type of steamer has a tall narrow shape. If you don't want to purchase an asparagus steamer, you can use the top of a double boiler, still keeping the tips out of the water. As the stalks are cooked, the steam will cook the tips. One approach that works, is to use a 6 to 8 cup coffee percolator as a steamer. This should work perfectly, as long as there are no traces of coffee taste or smell evident.
Cooked asparagus is typically served with butter, and lightly salted, or with salt and pepper. If you are on a low salt, or low fat diet, lemon juice is an excellent choice. Parmesan cheese, or another grated cheese, is also delicious on the stalks. Asparagus goes well with most other foods. There are some who say it should not be served with wine, as asparagus has a tendency to make other food and drink “taste green". True or not, you can be the best judge.
Two other approaches in how to cook asparagus are, to make soup, cream of asparagus soup is a favorite with many, and to grill. You could probably broil asparagus also, but that does not appear to be a common method. If you are going to grill asparagus, you need to be mindful of the intense heat, so the stalks don't become dry or charred. But, if you monitor the grilling process carefully, you should be pleasantly rewarded. Grilling with foil might be the best method, or at least the easiest, unless you choose to put the stalks on skewers.
One other method that should be mentioned is stir-fry. Asparagus is an excellent vegetable to stir-fry with chicken, shrimp, or beef. In summary, there are at least four answers to how to cook asparagus, any of which should serve you, and your dinner guests, well.