White asparagus is a troublesome vegetable; difficult to grow, costly to purchase and tricky to cook.
Like salsify or Belgian endive, it’s one of those slightly bitter, sunlight-deprived foods that are highly prized only in certain parts of northern Europe. If it’s ever had a toehold in America, it’s in the canned-food section of old-fashioned gourmet stores. “Give him the darkest inch your shelf allows,” Edwin Arlington Robinson wrote about the (justly) neglected poet George Crabbe, and he could have been talking about those cans of white asparagus you find gathering dust next to the chestnut honey and the lingonberry jam.
But don’t tell this to the Germans. As the mighty R.W. Apple tells us, it isn’t springtime in Germany until white asparagus appears in the market. As always, Apple gives us the perfect culturally defining detail to convey what asparagus means to Germans: “How deeply has Spargel (white asparagus) sunk into the German psyche? During WWII, the poles that the Nazis set up to deter Allied gliders were nicknamed ‘Rommel’s asparagus.’ “
Like Belgian endive, which is prized for its “blanch,” white asparagus is kept white by covering it with an opaque tarp, which keeps out the sun’s rays which would otherwise turn it green. The lack of sunlight produces its complex, bitter flavor.
Most fresh white asparagus in this country comes from Peru; the German variety usually comes here only in canned form. Peruvian white asparagus is more dense and fibrous than green asparagus. That means you need to do two things to prepare it: peel it thoroughly, and cook it longer than you would green asparagus.
White asparagus makes a delicious soup simmered with butter and celery root. It’s also tasty boiled and tossed in butter or in the recipe above with a sweet and sour grapefruit dressing to balance its bitterness and a thin slice of ham for that fatty accent it seems to crave.
John Broening cooks at Duo and Olivea restaurants in Denver.
White Asparagus with Grapefruit Dressing and Ham
Serves 4.
Ingredients
1 pound white asparagus
2 cups orange juice
1/4 cup grapefruit juice
1 tablespoon honey
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup canola oil
4 thin slices good country ham ( such as Benton’s) or prosciutto
Directions
Cut off the bottom inch from the white asparagus and discard. With a sharp peeler carefully peel the asparagus up to the tip. Rinse.
Bring a pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Boil the asparagus 8-10 minutes until tender. Shock in ice water and drain. Pat dry and keep at room temperature until ready to use.
In a small pot, reduce the orange juice to 1/4 cup. Cool. Whisk in the grapefruit juice, honey and salt and pepper. Slowly whisk in the oil to emulsify.
To serve, toss the asparagus in the dressing. Season with additional salt and pepper. Serve topped with a slice of country ham or prosciutto for each portion.
