Chefs love to cook a vegetable that is hitting shelves right now: asparagus.
The green asparagus is crunchy, just pan-fried. The white can be tender to accompany a fish or be served in vinaigrette. Asparagus is in season. A vegetable that is found in many regions of France, even if that of Alsace, that of the Landes or that of Touraine are the best known.
What attracts so many chefs to this product? The answer of Thierry Marx, two-star chef in Paris: “First, it draws towards spring. These are the first really green vegetables of the year, a marker of renewal in the kitchen, a marker of freshness and light on the plate.”
It is true that there is also a strong demand among citizens, not only for asparagus, but for vegetables. We rediscovered a taste for gardens and local products. Vegetables bring a new dynamic of flavour, taste and color palette, and asparagus is one of the spearheads.
To be consumed very fresh
It remains to know how to choose them? Thierry Marx has his technique: “By affinity! Me, I make a palette. From time to time from Touraine, which I alternate with Alsace, then I’ll go to the Landes. White, green, I panache. Above all, you have to keep the idea of no longer cooking it in 10 liters of water, which softens it. I prefer to simply scrape it, pass it under running water, and brown it in a buttered pan with salt, pepper and a pinch of water.”
The harvest goes very quickly, asparagus can grow 15 cm in 24 hours, so it is a product to be eaten very fresh. Very often, asparagus is shipped the same day it is harvested. You have to eat her quickly, she doesn’t really like the fridge.