food comas

Besides roasting asparagus, another favorite way to cook these delicious spring vegetables is to sauté them with mushrooms and onions.  I enjoy this same mushroom and onion combination when I sauté brussel sprouts as well!  Only charge is that I leave our the garlic, as I think it’s an uncessary flavor add to asparagus.

Similar to how I prepared my Rainbow Chard with Raisins, Pine Nuts, and Serrano Ham, I blanch the asparagus before finishing it with a quick sauté.  Blanching is a key step for cooking vegetables as it keeps them crisp and tender, as well as bringing out the vegetable’s vibrant colors.  You simply immerse the vegetables into boiling water for a brief, timed interval and then immediately transfer into ice water to stop the cooking process.  This prevents the vegetables from overcooking and getting soggy.

I love serving this as an accompaniment to any chicken or fish dish: Sautéed Chicken Breasts with Tarragon, Chicken Puttanesca, Baked Chicken with Sun-dried Tomatoes and Artichokes, Pan-Roasted Halibut, Lemon-Dill Halibut, and Poached Salmon.

Sautéed Asparagus with Mushrooms

Yields: 4-6 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 bunches fresh asparagus spears, trimmed
• EVOO
• 2 small onions, thinly sliced
• Pinch of chilli flakes
• 1 lb mushrooms, sliced
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Optional: grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Trim the asparagus, snapping the tough ends off.  Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the asparagus and blanch until tender but still slightly resistant to the tooth, 2 to 3 minutes.  Remove and immediately transfer to a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process.

In a large wok or skillet, heat some olive oil over medium high heat.  Add the onions and red pepper flakes and cook until the onions are translucent.   Stir in the mushrooms until lightly browned.

Gently mix in the asparagus spears and saute for a minute, just to let some of the edges brown and then remove from heat.

Season with salt and pepper.  Optional, sprinkle some grated Parmesan cheese on top!