How to Prepare Asparagus for Cooking
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Scrape the bottom parts of the asparagus stems with a knife.
Bundle 10-15 asparagus spears and tie them with string.
Cut the ends to make them all the same length.
Cook and serve
Boil the asparagus in water with salt until tender but not overcooked.
Serve on a napkin to absorb moisture, with sauce on the side.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Asparagus spears
- Forms the main body of the dish and becomes tender when boiled.
The step that matters
Boil until tender but not overcooked. Asparagus cooks quickly, and overcooking softens the stalks too far and dulls their fresh flavour and bright green colour.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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