When I started really examining what I eat, I had a realization: I needed to bring more veggies into my life. I know that may sound weird to a lot of you, but even vegetarians can have trouble getting enough vegetables into our diet. In fact, a huge pit that many of us fall into is relying too heavily on carbs. It’s really easy to survive almost solely on pasta, and in turn, receive the majority of your vegetables from either doctored-up sauce, or from the occasional vegetable lasagna.
Even when I made vegetables, I was using way too much carrots and corn, and not nearly enough greens. I was also relying too heavily on frozen vegetables instead of fresh, since I hardly ever cooked at home, and fresh vegetables would just go bad. But then something amazing happened right when I started cooking at home more: asparagus came into season.
I’ve always liked asparagus, but rarely eat it because I’m kind of particular about it. I loathe boiled asparagus, and even steaming it doesn’t really do much for me. I love grilled asparagus, and consequently, would only really eat it when we cooked out, which, before I met DJ Barbecue over there, wasn’t very often at all (especially since I had spent the last 3 1/2 years in NYC). Then, completely by accident, I discovered the holy grail: sauteed asparagus.
I know, reading my writing on this site must be like watching an infant discover her hands for the first time. It’s kind of exciting, but at the same time, it’s like, “dude. They’re your hands. Come on!” But regardless of how obvious it is, I felt like a frickin’ genius the first time I put asparagus in a frying pan.
My favorite go-to 15-minute meal this summer is a Quorn Gruyere Chik’n cutlet and sauteed asparagus. I stick the cutlet in the microwave for 45 seconds, just to soften it up a little bit, then I stick it in a small frying pan and cook it until it’s soft in the middle and the breading gets crispy. Meanwhile, I put a tablespoon or so of olive oil in another pan, some sliced garlic, salt, and of course, the asparagus. Then I cover it in a crapload of pepper. If I’m fancy and we have an open bottle lying around, I’ll even splash some red wine in there.
I cook it for however long the cutlet needs to cook (usually about ten minutes) and bam: I have the most amazing dinner on the face of the planet. Okay, maybe not really, but for 15 minutes and only a couple of ingredients? Yes; yes indeed.
I’ve also made the asparagus, fingerling potato and goat cheese pizza, which is also delightful if you want to add a little greenery to a pizza, and a few days ago, I had a bunch of tempura fried vegetables, including asparagus. This weekend I’m going to look around and see what else I can do with my new favorite vegetable, but why not start right here? What are some of your favorite ways of cooking asparagus? Give me some ideas and feed my obsession!
Clacked by Kona Gallagher 
on Jun 02, 2009 @ 13:56 EST5EDT
I have never cared for Asparagus because boiled is the way it was cooked the few times I tried it. The grilled or sauteed does sound good. I will have to try it.
I always roast it in the oven. Lay it out on the pan, drizzle with olive oil, kosher salt, crushed red pepper and maybe some fresh parmesan, throw it in the oven for a while. Boom! Roasted.
My mom steams it and adds lime. Incredible. It remains a little firm, bright green and the lime gives it a kick.