What is the use of asparagus?
Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) is a plant widely grown as a vegetable. The spears are commonly eaten. The root and seeds are used to make medicine. Asparagus can increase urine production and is also a good source of dietary fiber, folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin B6, and several minerals. Plant asparagus in spring or fall in a sunny spot with nutrient-rich, well-drained soil. Asparagus takes a few seasons to mature but will reap a harvest for 15 to 30 years, so choose a planting location that will go undisturbed for a long time.Asparagus can be harvested for a limited time (two weeks) the second year after planting crowns (three years from seed transplants). Overharvesting one year can weaken the plant and decrease yields the following year. Three years after planting the crowns, asparagus can be harvested for five to eight weeks.White asparagus is more expensive because it takes more work to produce. Asparagus is a perennial plant: it takes two to three years after planting to have asparagus that you can harvest, but once the bed is established the shoots should come up every spring for 15 to 30 years.All that’s needed is some healthy soil, some good sun exposure, some fire for pest and weed management… and most importantly, some patience. Asparagus is a perennial plant which means that it’s edible spears grow back year after year. In fact, once established an asparagus field can live up to 20 years!Once 2 years have past your asparagus has enough root mass/energy to push out more spears that you can harvest without removing all the energy from the roots and so it would survive you harvesting some of them.
What’s the best way to eat asparagus?
Sautéed Asparagus One of the absolute easiest ways to cook asparagus is to sauté it in a heavy pan with a little vegetable oil. The key is to get the pan hot and to avoid overcrowding the asparagus—you want to sear the stalks quickly so that they get a charred, woodsy flavor before their interiors get too soft. Blanching, roasting, and grilling are my three go-to methods for cooking asparagus, but they’re not the only ways to do it. You can also make sautéed asparagus for a frittata or pasta or poach whole spears in an inch of water for a quick dinner side dish. I even like it simmered into soup.Asparagus stalks are famously tender at the tips and hard and woody at the ends, so nearly every recipe you’ll find online starts with trimming those tough bases before cooking.When asparagus stalks are firm and aren’t sauced, it’s fine to pick them up with your fingers, one stalk at a time. Asparagus is traditionally a finger food, and the English and many other nationalities still see it as such.Trimming is a much less wasteful way to prep your asparagus—plus it results in neater, more uniform vegetables. We also take the quick extra step of peeling the base of the spears to ensure the asparagus is as tender throughout as possible. Here’s our method. Trim 1 inch off the base of the spears.