How to cook and shock fresh asparagus to retain that beautiful bright green color and enhance the natural asparagus flavor for serving chilled. Plus how to make aioli, the classic sauce. Great for parties, buffets, composed salads.
Real Food, Fresh & Seasonal. An Asparagus Classic. Scales from Small Plates to Large Platters. Potluck & Party Friendly. Low Carb. Low Fat. Weight Watchers Friendly. Naturally Gluten Free.
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First, Wow, the Asparagus.
True Story. Set out an enormous brunch buffet with platters of beautiful food and what impresses your Veggie Evangelist most? The one thing I go back for? The one thing I can't get out of my head? The one thing I wake up thinking about?
The asparagus, prepared and plated with perfection.
At Easter, my favorite dish at a magnificent brunch prepared by a former White House chef was, um, yes, the asparagus.
Aiii that asparagus was good – arrayed on huge platters, stems peeled halfway to the tips and perfectly, impeccably salted.
At first, I thought there might have been garlic in the cooking water. The chef sniffed at that idea so hmm, perhaps not.
Once home, it took three tries and three pounds of asparagus to get the salt balanced properly. Yes, I concede, dozens of spears were sacrificed to get the salt balance right.
What Makes This Asparagus So Special? Salt.
Salt has an undeserved bad reputation, we're always told to "eat less salt". So because salt is "bad" for us, we cook rice and pasta and eggs and – heavens, vegetables – with minimal salt and even – horrors – without salt.
But our bodies require salt. And salt brings out natural food flavors. My solution, my rationalization?
If we'd all just nix prepared and commercial food and even most restaurant food, especially the chains – and their high, high proportions of sodium – then it seems to me, we can let loose with salt for food cooked at home.
I'm not a nutritionist so please don't violate a doctor's order. But I'd love to know – is salt a good thing or a bad thing in your world? How much salt would you use to cook a pound of asparagus?
Sorry. Soapbox.
Now, the Aioli.
There are only two hard things about aioli.
Spelling – Is it spelled aioli or aoli or ayolee or what? (It is spelled aioli, two i's.) Pronunciation – Is it pronounced [a-oh-lee] or [a-yaw-lee] or [?-?h-lee]? (Experts vary.)
Please, don't trust my choice of #3, not from the bookworm who confidently corrected her 7th grade history teacher's pronunciation of the 15th president – you know, James BOO-chah-non.
So What Is Aioli, Exactly?
Aioli is a garlicky mayonnaise, at least in texture, consistency and casual parlance.
Technically, aioli is made with olive oil and garlic; homemade mayonnaise is made with egg yolks and canola oil. Both aioli and mayonnaise are emulsified by whisking or processing in a food processor, the combination of ingredients and technique give the two their distinctive texture.
THE BOTTOM LINE Aioli and mayonnaise are different sauces but are enough similar that many folks use the two words interchangeably.
How to Make Aioli
After spelling and pronunciation, aioli is dead easy.
Just whisk together garlic, egg yolk, lemon juice, mustard and olive oil.
Better yet, get out the food processor. At first I tried the whisk 'n' willpower method to make aioli. After ten minutes, I was bored to tears and my wrists were done-in. You can be smarter!
Kitchen power tools, people, they're great – it took all of a minute for the mini food processor attachment to the immersion blender (affiliate link) to whip aioli to a good consistency, someplace between mayonnaise and heavy cream, thick enough to dip into, thin enough for a slow pour.
Once you master a basic recipe for aioli, there are many variations, adding herbs for brightness or bits of vegetable (red pepper, say) for color.
When To Make Party Asparagus
Year in, year out, I find myself making one platter after another of Party Asparagus, often for Easter, always for spring and summer dinner buffets.
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PARTY ASPARAGUS
Hands-on time: 25 minutes
Time to table: 2-3 hours since may (and should) be made in advance
Serves: About 6 servings
ASPARAGUS
8 cups water
3 tablespoons kosher salt (or 1-1/2 tablespoons table salt though not recommended)
1 pound asparagus, thick spears and medium-thick spears are best here
BRING THE WATER TO A BOIL, ADD THE RIGHT PROPORTION OF SALT Bring the water to a boil on MEDIUM HIGH in a pan that's able to hold the asparagus, flat, in no more than two layers with water to spare between the spears. (I use a 9x13 baking pan.) When the water comes to a boil, add the salt and stir a bit to dissolve. (If using more water, the ratio is 4 cups water:1-1/2 tablespoons kosher salt. Please, keep to the ratio of water:salt.)
PREPARE AN "ICE WATER BATH" While the water comes to a boil, fill another pan with ice, then cold water. Have this ready before the asparagus goes into the boiling water, you want to allow time for the water to get really cold.
PREP THE SPEARS Meanwhile, wash the asparagus well. (Chew on a tip. If it's gritty, keep washing.) (1) With a vegetable peeler, peel the skins off the asparagus, about half-way up. Work carefully, you really don't want any skin. (2) Now snap off the woody ends. Start by bending somewhere near the end, moving your way up until the spear breaks off by itself. (3) If aesthetics are important, now slice a bit off the ends for evenness.
COOK THE ASPARAGUS JUST UNTIL CRISP Drop all the asparagus at once into the pan and let cook until done, maybe three or four minutes, maybe six or even eight, it depends on how thick the spears are and how chilled they were when being dropped into the water. Lift one out and test. The rawness should be cooked off but you want the spears to remain quite crisp, no dropping.
"SHOCK" THE ASPARAGUS IN ICE WATER, DRAIN & DRY Once they're ready, lift out all the asparagus and immediately drop into the ice water. (This is the "shocking" process, like moving from a hot sauna into the icy sea.) Leave them in the water just long enough to cool down (we don't want them soggy), then transfer immediately onto several layers of paper towels to drain and dry, tapping the top sides too.
CHILL For a party, cook the asparagus several hours in advance. To my taste, the asparagus should be served at a temperature somewhere between well-chilled and room temperature. Be sure to make plenty, people LOVE cold asparagus, allow at least six spears per person.
AIOLI
Hands-on time: 10 minutes
Time to table: 10 minutes but can be made in advance
Makes about 6 tablespoons
2 garlic cloves, chopped small
1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
7 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (the good stuff, I use gorgeous olive oil from O Olive Oil)
Salt & pepper to taste (I use no salt, just a little lemon pepper, excellent)
Whisk together the garlic, yolk, lemon juice and mustard – alternatively do a whiz or two in a small food processor, sorry, there's not enough volume for a big food processor. Slooooowly drizzle in the olive oil while whisking or processing, being sure to incorporate what's been added before adding more. The whisking/processing will introduce air to the mixture, that's what makes aioli so light and airy.
NUTRITION INFORMATION Aioli Only, Per Tablespoon: 149 Calories; 16g Tot Fat; 2g Sat Fat; 34mg Cholesterol; 6mg Sodium; 1g Carb; 0g 0Fiber; 0g Sugar; 1g Protein. WEIGHT WATCHERS Old Points 4 & PointsPlus 4 & SmartPoints 5 & Freestyle 5 & myWW green 5 & blue 5 & purple 5
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More Favorite Asparagus Recipes
~ My Favorite Asparagus Recipes ~
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~ How to Microwave Asparagus ~
~ Slow-Roasted Asparagus ~
~ Spring Garden Vegetable Soup with Asparagus, Artichokes, Peas & Spinach ~
~ more asparagus recipes ~
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from Kitchen Parade, my food column
Seasonal Eating: Early Spring Across the Years
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