Conscious Choice: Astonishing Asparagus

May 2001 | Cooking with the Seasons

Astonishing Asparagus

by Terra Brockman

Only Marcel Proust, with his magnificent powers of observation and acute sense memory could describe one of spring’s first vegetables this beautifully:

"...my greatest pleasure was the asparagus, bathed in ultramarine and pink and whose spears, delicately brushed in mauve and azure, fade imperceptibly to the base of the stalk — still soiled with the earth of their bed — through iridescences that are not of this world. It seemed to me that these celestial nuances betrayed the delicious creatures that had amused themselves by becoming vegetables and which, through the disguise of their firm, edible flesh, gave a glimpse in these dawn-born colors, these rainbow sketches, this extinction of blue evenings, of the precious essence that I would still recognize when, all night following a dinner where I had eaten them, they played in their crude, poetic farces, like one of Shakespeare’s fairies, at changing my chamberpot into a bottle of perfume.

Before we go any further, let me clarify that chamber pot remark. Proust was not the only writer to notice it, or to make a point of mentioning it. Gabriel García Márquez does the same in Love in the Time of Cholera. I read both excerpts smugly, knowing (from way back, from my father, a geneticist) that this phenomenon of odoriferous urine after eating asparagus was a genetic characteristic. One either did or did not metabolize a number of sulfur-containing compounds in asparagus (S-Methyl thioesters) and then did or did not have smelly pee. But it was recently discovered (in the late 1980s by scientists, but much more recently by me) that it is a genetic characteristic of an entirely different sort. There was a crucial error in the seemingly straight-forward experimental method. The researchers had their subjects eat asparagus and then, a short time later, asked them if their urine smelled, and tallied up the answers. The subjects dutifully reported back Yes or No. But the "No’s"— while being perfectly honest, also had urine that smelled...only they could not smell it. The genetic trait was not the metabolism or non-metabolism of the compound, it was the ability or inability to smell it!

Ancient Asparagus

People have been smelling asparagus-perfumed chamber pots (or not) for a very long time. We know that people were eating asparagus long before recorded history — from the simple fact that by the time the histories were written, asparagus had already become a favorite food. Ancient Nile-dwellers praised asparagus in their earliest documents, describing how it grew wild along the Nile and how fond they were of it.

For millennia, the only asparagus was the wild variety. The Romans sent their special "asparagus fleets" all around the Mediterranean to gather it. At some point, though, the Romans successfully domesticated the plant and were able to cultivate it throughout their empire. Pliny, writing in the first century B.C. praises both the wild and the recently domesticated asparagus: "Nature has made the asparagus wild, so that any one may gather it as found. But behold, the highly-manured asparagus that may be seen at Ravenna weighing three pounds." The new garden vegetable spread as fast as the Roman Empire did — to the Gauls, Germans, Britons, and from there to the rest of the world. And when the empire finally crumbled, the asparagus just kept on growing.

After asparagus crossed from the Old World to the New World, it reverted back to its wild state in many places. My father remembers stalking the wild asparagus along country roads and ditches in Illinois every spring.

Quick Cooking

The Roman emperor Augustus, when he wanted to terminate some unpleasant business, would proclaim: "Velocium quam asparagi coquantur," which translates as, "Let it be done quicker than you would cook asparagus." The worst thing you can do to asparagus is overcook it. Asparagus needs to be eaten soon after it is picked, and is best cooked quickly — either steamed or blanched.

The French and English tend to smother their asparagus in rich sauces, but to taste the true freshness of the season, start with something simple. Just as the simplest dress may be for some the most elegant, the sparest of dressings on your asparagus will be the most tasteful and tasty.

Simple Dressings for Warm Asparagus

The following recipes make enough dressing for about one-half pound (two servings) of asparagus.

Lemon and Butter Dressing
Squeeze the juice from one lemon over tender-crisp asparagus. Then drizzle on two tablespoons olive oil. Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Olive Oil and Nutmeg Dressing
Drizzle the cooked asparagus with two to three tablespoons of olive oil. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and freshly ground nutmeg to taste.

Anchovy and Lemon Dressing
This one is not quite so simple, but worth the added effort. In a sauté pan large enough to contain the asparagus, bring to a boil just enough salted water to cover the asparagus. Drop in the asparagus and cook two to three minutes until tender-crisp. Drain. In the same pan, add four tablespoons of olive oil and six anchovies. Turn the heat to low and gently heat until the anchovies melt into the oil. Add the asparagus and some fresh chopped parsley and salt to taste. Gently turn the spears until lightly coated. Add two tablespoons of lemon juice and turn again once or twice. Carefully transfer the asparagus and the juices in the pan to a serving platter.

Dressings for Cold Asparagus, with Variations

These favorite recipes from Lisa Comforty work equally well at elegant dinner parties or as after-work snacks.

Mayonnaise, Lemon, and Dill Dressing
Combine one cup mayonnaise with juice of one lemon and one tablespoon finely chopped dill. Salt and pepper are optional. Use as a dip for cold asparagus spears or pieces.

Variation 1: Yogurt. A mostly yogurt-based dressing can be made by substituting two-thirds cup of yogurt and one-third cup of mayonnaise.

Variation 2: More yogurt. For calories’ sake, you may want an even larger proportion of yogurt to mayonnaise. Try three-quarters cup yogurt and one-quarter cup mayonnaise, or even all yogurt, with salt and pepper to taste — it’s quite nice, just not as rich.

Vinaigrette Dressing
With a fork, whisk one-third cup of olive oil with one-third to two-thirds cup of red wine vinegar, depending upon how thick, vinegary, or low-cal you want your dressing to be. Add one-half teaspoon of salt (optional) and one-quarter teaspoon of pepper. Drizzle over cold asparagus spears or pieces.

Variation 1: Lemon. Substitute the juice of one lemon for the vinegar.

Variation 2: Mustard. To the vinaigrette add one-half teaspoon Dijon mustard.

Variation 3: Garlic. To the vinaigrette, or either variation, add one medium clove of garlic, minced.

Italian Input

For asparagus that is just a little fancier, try one of these recipes from Emilia-Romanga, just north of Tuscany.

Baked Asparagus with Parmesan
3/4 pound asparagus
2 Tablespoons melted butter
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigianno Reggiano

1. Blanch the asparagus by plunging it into salted boiling water for about thirty seconds. It will turn bright green but still be crisp. Drain it and then arrange it in a shallow ovenproof serving dish.

2. Drizzle the melted butter over it and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle the freshly grated cheese over the top.

3. Bake until lightly browned, about twenty minutes.

Frittatine Ripiene di Asparagi (Thin Frittata Stuffed with Asparagus)
This Easter brunch special is adapted from Viana La Place’s wonderful cookbook, Verdura.
6 eggs
6-8 ounces basil, leaves coarsely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for sprinkling
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 pound asparagus (thinner is better)
4 Tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

1. Break the eggs into a bowl and beat them lightly with a fork. Add the basil, garlic, grated Parmesan, salt and pepper. Let the mixture rest for 20-30 minutes to allow the basil flavor to permeate the eggs.

2. Plunge the asparagus into a pot of salted boiling water and cook until tender crisp. Drain well. Season with salt and a few drops of olive oil. Keep warm.

3. Place one tablespoon of olive oil in a large sauté pan and turn on the heat to medium. Pour a ladleful of the egg mixture into the pan and swirl it around. Lower the heat to medium low. When the frittata turns opaque, carefully flip it over and lightly cook the other side. Repeat, making four thin, crepelike frittatas.

4. Divide the asparagus into four bunches. Place one bunch on the far side of a frittata. Roll it up, completely enfolding the asparagus. Repeat with the other three bunches. Arrange each frittata on a plate and sprinkle with torn basil leaves and grated Parmesan.

Nutrition Notes: Asparagus is high in chlorophyll and rich in vitamins A, B1, B2, and C, with only thirty-five calories per cup. It is also a good source of potassium, fiber, vitamin B6, triamin, and especially folacin (also known as folic acid or vitamin B9). Asparagus is among the leading suppliers of folacin, providing 60 percent of the RDA per serving. Folacin helps in the duplication of cells for growth and repair of the body, and in blood cell reproduction in the bone marrow. It is said to reduce the incidence of colon cancer, and adequate folacin can prevent miscarriage and neural tube defects. Asparagus also has a very high level of glutathione, one of the most potent anticarcinogens and antioxidants.

Terra Brockman is the director of The Land Connection Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving farmland and promoting small-scale, diversified, organic agriculture in Illinois. Visit www.thelandconnection.org or call 309-965-2407 to learn how to get involved.

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