Sunday, July 25, 2010
Hi-Speed Asparagus
If you like stir fried asparagus--the smoky, roasted kind Janet likes to make--we've discovered a way to shorten the process from 10-12 minutes to about 5. Wash and dry the asparagus, then put it in a glass bowl, pop it in the microwave uncovered and set the microwave to cook "fresh vegetable" "less done." (Those are the settings on our microwave, you may have to adapt to yours.) From there, pop it into a hot, lightly oiled pan and finish it. Salt and pepper to taste. Takes just a few minutes in the pan to basically sear the outside of the asparagus (the microwave takes care of the inside), and voila! Please note: one can screw this up by overcooking the asparagus in the microwave, which we did recently when Nate, Jeni, and the kids were over for dinner. That time, however, we covered the asparagus with plastic wrap and did not remove the wrap as soon as the microwave finished up.
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Interesting! I've heard of starting baked potatoes, yams, or winter squash in the microwave, finishing in the oven -- this is a great take on the same concept. We recently started chopping our spears into 2"-ish chunks, which also seems to shorten the sautee time. Typically we sautee for a minute or two in oil w/ s&p, put a few T of water in the pan, cover, and let sit for 5 or so minutes and it finishes nicely.
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