Latest news with #asparagus
New York Times
6 days ago
- Lifestyle
- New York Times
For a Better Stir-Fry, Velvet Your Chicken
I'll be honest — I am stubbornly Team Thighs 'n' Legs when it comes to chicken. But I do appreciate that there are applications where white meat is the better choice. I like to use chicken breasts (preferably with skin and breastbone) as the base for a chicken soup, or poached for cold salads. And while I'd normally reach for boneless, skinless thighs for stir-fries, the technique that Kevin Pang uses for his new butter-soy chicken and asparagus stir-fry has caught my eye. The technique, you might guess, is velveting. Velveting — a two-step process that involves marinating the meat in a cornstarch mixture and then blanching it in either oil or water — keeps the chicken breast slices from drying out and helps the soy-butter sauce cling better. I'll make this dish with asparagus while it's in season, and then switch to green beans or snap peas. Kevin doesn't add anything spicy to his stir-fry, but I wouldn't say no to some spoonfuls of — all together now — chile crisp. Featured Recipe View Recipe → Speaking of soy sauce and chile crisp: We recently published this very handy guide to which condiments belong in the fridge and which are plenty happy in your pantry. It's both informative and good for settling arguments. Here's the tl;dr version: Sesame salmon bowls: This Kay Chun one-pot recipe, inspired by chirashi, combines vinegared rice with just-cooked salmon, crunchy vegetables and a soy vinaigrette. If you have any furikake, I'd sprinkle some on the rice before assembling your bowl. Pasta with green bean ragù: From the wizard who brought us gochujang buttered noodles and a glorious pasta al pomodoro comes this rich, stick-to-your-bones pasta that still feels summery. Eric Kim, always. Easy chickpea salad: Any recipe that includes za'atar gets my attention (and yes, I am fully committed to this za'atar and labneh spaghetti). Kristina Felix's potluck-perfect dish includes cucumbers, red onion, tomato, lemon, fresh herbs and that lovely, sumac-y spice mix. Pistachio halvah Rice Krispies treats: I mean, the name kind of says it all, doesn't it? A delightful recipe adapted by Lisa Donovan from Shilpa and Miro Uskokovic, who opened Hani's Bakery and Café in Manhattan in 2024.
CTV News
7 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Daily Dish: It's asparagus season!
Ottawa Watch Rebecca Kealey from Foodland Ontario shows us two unique ways to use fresh asparagus in your meal.
Telegraph
03-06-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Burrata with asparagus, Parma ham and basil dressing
I love handling this type of dish, especially when I have good ingredients. It's an assembly of components. Dishes with burrata are a bit difficult. One globe per person seems too much, but once you split them the cream inside starts to come out. Go for split or whole, depending on your appetite. There's nothing wrong with using frozen peas, especially petits pois – they're little pops of sweetness. Ingredients For the dressing 125ml extra-virgin olive oil (not a bitter Tuscan one), plus extra for drizzling 1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar, or as needed ½ tsp Dijon mustard 20g basil leaves (no stalks) ½ small shallot, diced For the salad 175g asparagus 30g fresh or frozen peas, defrosted if frozen 25g pea shoots 4 slices Parma ham, torn into pieces 2 burratas Method Step To make the dressing, add 125ml extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar, ½ tsp Dijon mustard and 20g basil leaves to a food processor with ½ tbsp water and some seasoning, and whizz. Step Add ½ small diced shallot – it will flavour the dressing as it sits – and pulse until you get a thickness similar to pesto. Taste to see whether you want to fiddle a bit with the seasoning, oil or white balsamic. This makes more dressing than you need but it keeps well in the fridge. Step Prepare 175g asparagus by snapping off the tough woody end of each spear. Steam the asparagus for about 7 minutes, or until just tender – the timing will depend on the thickness of the spears. Dry in a clean tea towel to absorb the moisture clinging to them. Step Divide the salad components – the asparagus, 30g fresh or frozen peas, 25g pea shoots, 4 slices torn Parma ham and 2 burratas – between your plates. Season everything and spoon some of the basil dressing over the top. Add a swirl of extra-virgin olive oil and serve.
CBC
31-05-2025
- Health
- CBC
Roast it. Grill it. Fry it. But don't overcook it! Asparagus season is here: Jasmine Mangalaseril
Social Sharing Asparagus season is underway, so now is the perfect time to enjoy the season's first local harvest. Asparagus plants grown from seed take three years to produce spears. Many growers plant one-year-old crowns (a string mop-like central group of stems surrounded by finger-like roots) to harvest their first crop sooner. Once established, crowns can produce for 20 years or longer. Crowns send up multiple spears. The hotter the weather, the faster they'll grow — sometimes 25 centimetres in 24 hours. On hot, humid days, they can be harvested twice a day. "You start at one part of the field, and you keep picking from when the sun comes up until you've picked the field. Then the next day you just start over again," said Tim Barrie, owner of Barrie's Asparagus Farm, near Cambridge, Ont. Barrie inherited the farm from his father, who switched from farming beef cattle to asparagus more than 50 years ago. The first crop "was an absolute fail." The second wasn't. "Every single spear [my parents] picked was sold. They just put a sign out. People drove in and they sold everything. So, they said, 'Okay, this is going to be pretty good,'" recalled Barrie. When the season ends, the spears grow into 2- to 2.5-metre-tall ferns, which gather energy for the next season. "If you stop picking it early, it'll start working on next year's crop early," explained Barrie. "You could keep going, but that would be really dumb because you're just hurting next year's crop." Not all the spears are destined for home or restaurant kitchens. Some are processed into sauces and other preserves. "It's actually a lot of fun talking to some of our partners about what products we're going to play around with," said Barrie. "A lot of these ideas just get bounced around between our family and friends." Their products include salsas, finishing salts, and antipasto. Horseradish mustard and zucchini relish are customer favourites. Asparagus tips Asela (Ace) Bulner, executive chef of Cambridge's Blackshop Restaurant, offers some suggestions for home cooks. "If the asparagus is not nice and green, that means it has been sitting in the storage for a bit," said Bulner. Bulner said for the best tasting asparagus, a cook should: Avoid tight rubber bands: Spears that stand in water too long will swell, making the bands tight. Look for tightly closed tips: If the scale leaves are opened out, they'll likely be fibrous. Keep them fresh: Stand them in an ice bath and cover the tips in a damp paper towel in the fridge. When it comes to cooking asparagus "you need that crunch. It has to be cooked, but it you need that bite. Otherwise, it's going to be mushy," said Bulner. When cooking asparagus, Bulner suggests the following: Ready in minutes: Regardless of cooking method, they only need a few minutes per side. The last to be grilled: Add the spears to the grill, after the proteins and other veg are done. Set the colour: Adding a little lemon juice to blanching water helps to keep the colour vibrant. Avoid overpowering herbs and spices: Try fresh herbs, including oregano or sage. Add a splash of sharpness: A squeeze of lemon or toss in dressings made with citrus juice, balsamic vinegar, or rice wine vinegar, to brighten flavour. "It depends on the dish you create. If you're having fish, you can use some dill, fennel. If you're [having] a steak, you have to keep it simple." Ace Bulner's Bang Bang Asparagus This crispy asparagus tempura is a perfect side or starter, served with dipping sauce. Here, ingredient temperature is important — cold ingredients will help to inhibit gluten formation, so your fried batter will be light and crispy. Yield: 4 Servings Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 10 Minutes 1 bunch fresh asparagus spears, trimmed 250 ml ice cold sparkling water or club soda 1 egg yolk, chilled 115 g (190 ml) all-purpose flour plus more for dusting 35 g (60 ml) cornstarch optional Pinch baking soda (optional) Neutral oil for deep frying (such as canola, grapeseed, sunflower, peanut), as needed Salt to taste Dipping sauce, to serve, such as nam jim aioli lemony mayo spicy mayo Pat dry asparagus spears. If they are thick, halve them lengthwise and set aside. In a high sided pot, heat 5 cm of oil to 175°C/350°F. Line a plate with paper towels to drain the cooked spears. While the oil is heating, gently whisk the yolk into the sparkling water. Lightly stir in flour, cornstarch (if using), and baking soda until just combined. The batter should be cold, lumpy, and not over mixed. When the oil is at temperature, work in batches to avoid overcrowding. Lightly dust spears in flour, then dip into batter. Let excess batter drip off. Carefully lower into hot oil. Fry for one to two minutes per side. When done, the spears should be lightly golden and crispy.
The Guardian
26-05-2025
- General
- The Guardian
Rukmini Iyer's quick and easy recipe for asparagus tart with tapenade and eggs
I love puff pastry tarts. The ease of just unrolling a sheet, scattering it with something delicious and giving it a quick stint in the oven, and dinner has almost cooked itself. This variation, with an olive tapenade-spiked cream cheese base, asparagus and eggs works as well for dinner as it does for a weekend brunch. If you're a chilli fiend, a scattering of hot chilli flakes (or, indeed, sliced fresh chilli) won't go amiss, either. Prep 15 min Cook 20 min Serves 4 320g ready-rolled puff pastry (ideally all butter)150g full-fat cream cheese 3 heaped tsp black olive tapenade – I like Belazu400g asparagus1 tsp olive oilSea salt flakes 4 medium eggs1 tsp aleppo chilli flakes (optional) Heat the oven to 220C (200C fan)/425F/gas 7. Unroll the pastry on to a baking tray, using the paper it came wrapped in to line the tray. With a sharp knife, score a border all around the pastry 2½cm from the outer edge. Mix the cream cheese and tapenade in a small bowl, then spread this all over the pastry up to the scored border. Snap or cut the woody ends off the asparagus, tip the spears into a bowl, add the olive oil and a half-teaspoon of salt, and toss to coat. Arrange the spears all over the pastry, drizzle over the oil from the bowl, then bake for 15 minutes. Take the tart out of the oven, make four holes and crack in the eggs. Turn down the oven to 200C (180C fan)/350F/gas 4, then bake the tart for six minutes more, until the egg whites are set and the yolks are set on top but still soft to the touch – they should be runny inside (if you prefer your yolks cooked through, give the eggs eight minutes instead, but be aware that oven temperatures vary, so check after six minutes to avoid overcooked, bouncy yolks). Scatter the tart with some flaky sea salt and the chilli flakes, if using, and serve immediately.
