Asparagus
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Scrape off the white skin from the lower ends of the asparagus and cut the stalks to even lengths.
Soak the asparagus in cold water until ready to cook.
Cook
Bring the water to a boil and add the salt and baking soda.
Tie the asparagus in neat bunches and add to the boiling water.
Cook for about 20 minutes, keeping the lid off the saucepan to preserve the green color.
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
- Is the vegetable being cooked, and its stalks soften to tender as they boil.
- Baking soda
- Makes the cooking water alkaline, which helps keep the green color bright.
The step that matters
Cooking for about 20 minutes with the lid off. Heat slowly breaks down the asparagus's cell walls, so it turns soft and dull if cooked too long. Leaving the lid off lets volatile acids escape with the steam, which helps keep the green color.
“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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