White asparagus: cooking recipes. Dishes of white asparagus

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Asparagus (Asparagus in Latin) - a plant of the bulbous family, a relative of onions, garlic, lilies.

People have different views of this plant. Some people think that this is a green twig in a bouquet, others - a delicious dish in a French cafe, others will remember the "Korean salad" in the supermarket.

And it's all about asparagus. Its fluffy twigs are used to decorate flower arrangements, shoots (shoots growing from the ground from the bulbs) are an excellent vegetable for preparing gourmet dishes.

Asparagus in Russia is also called a product made from soy milk - fuju. Korean salads are made from it, in particular, but it has nothing to do with real asparagus.

A bit of history

Asparagus has been used as a vegetable for over two thousand years. It was widely used in Greece, Ancient Egypt and Ancient Rome. Since the end of the 15th century, this vegetable has been grown and eaten, first in France and then throughout Western Europe.

Asparagus was considered a delicacy andwas present at the tables of the emperors of Rome, the kings of France, the pharaohs of Egypt, the party leaders of Eastern Europe. Asparagus has always been more than just a vegetable dish; numerous medicinal properties were attributed to it, which is partly true.

Young "sticks" of asparagus are used in pharmaceuticals, they contain many vitamins, trace elements and minerals.

In Russia, asparagus became famous in the 18th century, but is still little grown and not well known as a vegetable.

Asparagus: varieties

Cultural Asparagus Varieties:

• white;
• green;
• purple.

White asparagus is grown in a special way. When shoots appear on the surface of the earth, they are sprinkled (spud), they are not allowed to grow under the sun's rays. Until recently, it was considered a delicacy and was highly valued. Only white asparagus was served in gourmet restaurants with caviar, goat cheese, truffles.

Green asparagus is grown naturally, under the sun. Currently, it is valued for its high content of nutrients and pronounced taste. It is the most common type of asparagus in modern cooking, present on the menu of fine restaurants in Belgium, France and Germany.

Purple asparagus was invented by the French. This vegetable is a cross between a white and a green variety. White asparagus is grown under the sun for a while, turning purple before becominggreen. Gourmets appreciate purple asparagus for its peculiar bitter taste.

There is wild asparagus in nature. It grows well all over the world. Wild asparagus is found in the Crimea, Western Siberia, the Caucasus, the Middle East, Europe, Africa and America. It is believed that the wild vegetable is tastier and contains more nutrients.

Asparagus Cooking Tips

There are many dishes made from asparagus: mashed potatoes, soups, desserts, salads. All recipes use a boiled vegetable, white asparagus is no exception.

Recipes for cooking white asparagus have their own nuances:

1. The stems of the vegetable must be inspected, thoroughly rinsed under running cold water, especially the area with scales. If it is impossible to wash the head of the stem from the sand, the scales are cut off.
2. Asparagus to clear from a dense skin. This is done with great care, as even a small uncleaned area can spoil the whole dish.
3. From the bottom of the stem, cut off a fifth (if the asparagus is not very fresh, then one fourth). The freshness of asparagus is determined by the cut: it must be moist. A fresh vegetable is springy and creaky.
4. Tie the peeled asparagus into bundles and boil vertically in boiling water, as the lower part of the vegetable is tougher and takes longer to cook. The bundle must be vertically fixed in a saucepan (with the help of a load) or use a special container for boiling asparagus. The lower parts of the stems are boiled in water, while the upper ones are cooked with steam.
5. Asparagus is cooked for a short time, about ten or fifteen minutes. S alt is added to the boiling watera small amount of butter or vegetable oil. The cooking process must be monitored carefully so as not to digest the product into porridge.
6. Properly boiled asparagus stays upright when the stalk is picked up with a fork and lifted off the pan.
7. After cooking, the asparagus must be rinsed with cold water. A properly processed vegetable should retain its taste and useful properties, it should be nice to crunch.

Many different dishes are prepared from prepared asparagus. The peeled skin and cut off parts are not thrown away, they are used when cooking soups and sauces.

So, white asparagus appeared in your home stocks - how to prepare such a unique product? What recipes should you use to please your loved ones with a delicious dish?

Asparagus: Romanian cuisine

White asparagus dishes are prepared in many European countries, they are not exotic or very difficult to prepare.

For example, in Romania, boiled stems are placed on a dish, after drying on a napkin. They are served with various sauces or crushed crackers fried in melted butter.

One of the asparagus sauce recipes consists of the following ingredients:

• chicken egg - two yolks;
• mustard - one teaspoon;
• sunflower oil - one glass;
• lemon juice - half a teaspoon (can be replaced with vinegar);
• s alt - to taste;
• gherkin (or small pickle) - one piece;
• greens -parsley, tarragon, green onion (to taste).

Put two chicken yolks in a container, s alt, add lemon juice, mustard, beat with a whisk. In small portions, without ceasing to stir the yolks, pour in sunflower oil. The mixture will gradually thicken (like mayonnaise). You can use a blender to speed up the process. Finely chop the greens, gherkin, onion and pour into the prepared mixture. The sauce is ready.

Another recipe from Romanian cuisine: Oven Asparagus Meatballs.

Required:

• asparagus - one kilogram;
• flour - two tablespoons;
• grated cheese - two tablespoons;
• butter - one tablespoon;
• chicken eggs - three pieces;
• sour cream - one glass
• s alt to taste.

Boil asparagus, remove from boiling water, dry on a paper towel. Grind the stems with a meat grinder or blender. In the resulting puree, add flour, cheese, eggs, butter, s alt. Mix well, roll up meatballs, fry in a pan. Put the balls in a baking dish, pour sour cream with a teaspoon of flour, sprinkle with cheese and bake in the oven for twenty minutes. Serve hot.

French Asparagus Cream Soup

Asparagus soups are prepared. These meals are he althy and low in calories.

French-style white asparagus soup is prepared from the following ingredients:

• water - 600 ml;
• asparagus - 500 grams;
• butter - one tablespoonspoon;
• onion - half an onion;
• cream (20%) - half a glass;
• white bread - pieces of French baguette (to taste).

Rinse white asparagus, peel, cut into small pieces, add water. Cook over medium heat for twenty minutes. Stems should become soft.

Peel the onion, rinse under running cold water, finely chop, fry in butter until golden brown. Add the onion to the pot with the asparagus. When the vegetable becomes soft, puree the contents of the pan with a blender. Add cream to the puree, s alt, boil for five minutes. Puree soup served with toasted white bread croutons.

Asparagus: marinating recipe

Marinated white asparagus is very easy to prepare.

To do this, you will need the following products:

• asparagus - 500 grams;
• garlic head;
• vinegar - one tablespoon;
• olive oil - two tablespoons;
• white pepper - one teaspoon;
• Dijon mustard - one tablespoon.

Wash asparagus, peel, pour boiling water or boil for a couple.

Olive oil mixed with Dijon mustard, vinegar, pepper and minced garlic (one tablespoon). Whisk everything well. Place the prepared asparagus stalks in a saucepan, pour over the marinade, cover and refrigerate. After about three hours, the pickled vegetable will be ready

Frozen asparagus

In Russia, not everyone can afford in the seasoneat freshly cut asparagus. Of course, our crafty gardeners are already growing this vegetable in their summer cottages, but still, for many, asparagus is exotic.

Supermarkets sell frozen asparagus (white and green). It can also be used to make delicious and nutritious meals.

Frozen white asparagus is prepared similarly to fresh. It must be remembered that it cannot be thawed before cooking, frozen shoots are placed in boiling water.

Try the following dish with frozen asparagus.

You will need:

• frozen white asparagus - one kilogram;
• chicken egg - two pieces;
• flour - four tablespoons;
• cream - two tablespoons;
• ground almonds - 200 grams;
• lemon, orange - a few slices;
• sugar, s alt, pepper - to taste

Cook asparagus in boiling water with s alt, sugar, a few slices of lemon and orange. Boil 10 or 15 minutes. Carefully remove, dry on a paper towel.

Prepare breading. In one bowl, mix flour, pepper, s alt. In the other - cream with eggs. In the third bowl, prepare ground almonds.

Cooled asparagus shoots first roll in flour with spices, then dip in egg mixture and roll in almonds. Fry prepared asparagus in a pan.

Served hot with lemon and orange slices.

Conclusion

Asparagus is a vegetable that you need to know, love and be able to cook. The subject of our article was mainly white asparagus. howprepare this product, was detailed in the material. Dishes from it are extremely useful and low-calorie. Despite the fact that asparagus is little known in Russia and is considered a delicacy, do not neglect this vegetable. If you have the opportunity to buy (or even grow) he althy shoots, prepare yourself and your loved ones a hearty and tasty dish (almost like in an elite European restaurant): green asparagus, purple asparagus, white asparagus - choose cooking recipes to your taste. Bon appetit!