How to prep asparagus
by Cookthink
Asparagus is one of the easier vegetables to prep. Still, there are a few good tricks to know. Here’s my usual approach for just about every asparagus dish: First I rinse and dry them well. When I have some time and want a nice presentation, I’ll cut off and discard the bottom inch or so of the thick fibrous stem. Then I’ll peel the bottom 2-3 inches of the stems with a vegetable peeler. Peeling exposes the tender flesh inside.When I have less time, I discard the entire bottom part. To figure out where to cut, I take one spear and, using both hands, break it in two. It will naturally break at the right spot.Then I line the spears up and cut off the bottoms at that breaking point.If I’m broiling asparagus or serving it drizzled with a sauce or vinaigrette, I leave the spears whole. For other dishes — sautés, stir-fries, soups, papillotes — I like to cut the spears on the bias into pieces 1-3 inches long.Aside from making them look nice, the angled edges tend to catch onto the surrounding food and keep the asparagus from sinking to the bottom of the serving dish.
When I have less time, I discard the entire bottom part. To figure out where to cut, I take one spear and, using both hands, break it in two. It will naturally break at the right spot.
Then I line the spears up and cut off the bottoms at that breaking point.
If I’m broiling asparagus or serving it drizzled with a sauce or vinaigrette, I leave the spears whole. For other dishes — sautés, stir-fries, soups, papillotes — I like to cut the spears on the bias into pieces 1-3 inches long.
Aside from making them look nice, the angled edges tend to catch onto the surrounding food and keep the asparagus from sinking to the bottom of the serving dish.
