Asparagus, Preserved in Cans
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Scrape the asparagus and wash them in cold water.
Tie them in bundles and cut them to the same size.
Parboil the asparagus in lightly salted water for 5 minutes.
Immerse in cold water, drain, and dry on a linen towel.
Pack and process
Arrange in boxes with heads alternating directions.
Cover with cold boiled water and lightly salted.
Seal the boxes and boil in a hot water bath for 1.5 hours.
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
- Form the main body of the dish, which softens into a tender texture during parboiling and processing.
- Coarse sea salt
- Seasons the parboiling water and the packing liquid, adding flavour to the asparagus.
The step that matters
Parboil the asparagus. Parboiling for the stated time softens the spears and partly cooks them before sealing. Cooling them quickly in cold water stops the cooking, helping keep a firm texture and bright 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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