Fresh asparagus spears make a good side dish for a grilled meal; they are simple, quick and taste great. If you’re not crazy about the taste, you can marinate them in a little lemon juice and extra-virgin olive oil beforehand, adding a dash of garlic or pepper maybe. Even if you don’t marinate them, drizzle some olive oil on them before grilling to keep them from drying out.
On high heat, grill each spear for 3 to 5 minutes, turning them over every minute or so.
You want them to be slightly brown in places, but not blackened. Remove from the grill and serve right away, while they’re hot, with a pad of butter.
A handy way grill them is to insert a couple of skewers through a group of 5 or 6 asparagus stalks; this saves time since you can turn the whole bunch over without fiddling around with flipping each one of the little slippery buggers individually.
Asparagus is low in calories, contains no cholesterol, and is quite low in sodium. It is a good source of folic acid, potassium, dietary fiber, and rutin. The amino acid asparagine gets its name from asparagus, the asparagus plant being rich in this compound.
When buying asparagus, select firm but moist stalks with dark green or purple tips, and avoid stalks whose bottoms are dried out and fibrous, they have been sitting in the store too long.
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