Asparagus, Asparagus, Asparagus

Eating the Season's Jewel

It was a very real fear that I wouldn’t be on British soil for the start of the season but the asparagus came early this year (has everything come a bit early?) and, as per, I’ve been eating as much as is humanly possible.

Do you eat it nearly every day when it’s in season too? It’s not difficult to do when it’s such a versatile spear of great green flavour. As soon as it arrives at the market, it’s straight home to a vase of water, displayed like a bunch of flowers on the side.

And then into the steamer it goes because that’s the best and easiest way to cook it. Three to four minutes. Bamboo somewhat imparts a slightly woody aroma, too.

I devour it plain like this for days, carrying around handfuls of it. I’ve been known to have some in my dress pockets, provided the pockets are deep enough. See below. En route to a funeral. The dress code said ‘feel free to wear bright colours’ and I showed up in bright red amidst a sea of black. The asparagus was a comfort though. And the fact that my friend was probably pissing herself laughing at me on a cloud somewhere.

After a while, once I’ve had my fill of simple green, I like to introduce sauces. First, plain butter, then maybe a hollandaise, then chopped egg vinaigrette (I have the Goods Shed to thank for that one), peanut satay is pretty good, and last year I started adding mushrooms on top, too.

Below you’ll see St George’s mushroom cooked in butter and pepper, and then I also recently tried raw chestnut mushrooms chopped finely with marjoram, garlic, capers, parmesan and lemon juice. It was really good.

You can enjoy asparagus raw, cutting into into thin slices and mixing it with rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce, fresh lime, sesame oil, fresh ginger, garlic, fresh coriander and mint, sesame seeds and sliced almonds. Leave it to chill in the fridge for a bit and it’s really refreshing.

Always save your ends for soup. You can amass a pile pretty quickly. I make mine with lots of homemade chicken broth, lemon zest, an onion, a potato, and I save parmesan rinds to throw in while it’s simmering to impart its salty goodness. Nibbling on the hot, gooey, wet rind when it’s finished is pretty tantalising - one of the highlights of the spring. Put smashed smoked almonds, chives, roasted garlic cloves and creme fraiche on top when you’re done. Ooh, or even a soft cheese.

Read more about soups here:

+ When the Wild Garlic Comes >

+ It’s a Chicken Broth Party >

+ Cauliflower, Porcini Mushroom & Sage Soup >

Asparagus is a beaut with rich meats. Add it to burgers (pictured here with a bone marrow beefburger and topped with cote hill blue cheese, rosehip jelly and lots of gherkins), or last year I served some with a beef shin that had been slowly cooked in smoky lapsang souchong black tea. Evidence below of it alongside another meaty dish with fatty hogget and cherries fermented with bay and rose.

Basically I’m here to advise that you serve asparagus with every meal. My favourite combination last year was with an impromptu creamed corn chowder with shredded roast chicken, tom yum paste, chilli, lime and coriander. I blackened the asparagus on the grill and lay it over the top. As the season progresses, it also lays nicely over smoked fish chowders on top of crusty buttery croutons with pops of happy tomatoes.

These aren’t all the ways to eat asparagus, just some. Give me time. I’m only 38. I’ll keep building on this baby each year until I transform into asparagus myself. It would probably look a bit like this…

How do you like to eat yours?