Blistered Asparagus with Feta and Dukkah Inspired Mix

Blistered Asparagus Photo by Samantha Couzens

I escaped the cliche of writing a wild garlic post in April, but I can’t leap frog over another cliche for the second month in a row. May is time for British asparagus, and I’m joyfully joining the swathes of people writing about it right now. Sorry, not sorry. Unlike wild garlic, asparagus is much more widely available – you’ll be able to find it in every supermarket, greengrocers or farmers market up and down the land, until the season ends towards mid June.

How you cook your asparagus depends on what you’re serving it with. Got a rich fatty sauce to pair it with? Then keep the cooking process free of fat and steam or blanch. Preparing for a pasta sauce, then sautéing is what you want.

In this recipe, I’ve chosen to blister the asparagus in olive oil using a frying (or griddle) pan as this will add a deep, smoky flavour. The asparagus is then topped with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to brighten it up, a crunchy mix of nuts, seeds, and spices for texture, and a touch of feta for a creamy, salty finish.

This recipe is taken from my cookbook It Starts with Veg (shared here with permission from my publishers). One of the joys of writing a seasonal cookbook – and of seasonal eating in general – is the thrill of returning to recipes as the seasons change. Over the past year since the book was published, I’ve loved revisiting dishes that had been in hibernation, just like the vegetables themselves. Once I’ve had my fill of asparagus, it will be time for the arrival of the pods, beans, then all the vibrant recipes from the summer vegetables chapter. The excitement never ends.

We only get British asparagus for two months a year, let’s make the most of it.

Blistered Asparagus with Feta and Dukkah Inspired Mix
 
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Asparagus blistered over a high heat is my first craving when it comes into season. I like to top it with creamy salty feta and the flavour bomb of a crunchy spiced dukkah inspired mix. Dukkah’s origin is in Egyptian cuisine. There are ways to make it with different combinations of nuts and spices but I prefer to keep it simple using just four ingredients. For a more substantial serving, add a self-saucing gooey soft boiled egg on top.
Author:
Serves: 2
Ingredients
FOR THE DUKKAH
FOR THE DISH
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 500g/1lb 2oz asparagus, tough ends snapped off and trimmed
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • 80g/2¾oz feta cheese
  • salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. For the dukkah, heat a dry frying pan to a medium-high heat. Toast the hazelnuts for 2–3 minutes until they start to brown and release their oils, slide out of the pan. Set aside. Next, add the sesame seeds to the frying pan – they will toast and start to dance around the pan in a matter of seconds – transfer into your mortar bowl. Lastly, toast the coriander and cumin together, until they start to smell fragrant. Transfer to your mortar with the sesame seeds. Using your pestle, roughly break all the seeds down, leaving a little texture. Roughly chop your hazelnuts then add these into the spices. Gently pound the hazelnuts into the spices, again leaving a little texture.
  2. Wipe out the pan, and put back on a medium-high heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add your asparagus and cook for 5–7 minutes (depending on the thickness of the spears), tossing regularly until blistered on all sides. Transfer to a serving platter, season with salt and pepper, and squeeze over the juice of a lemon. Crumble over the feta and top with as much dukkah as you fancy.
Notes
Try the feta and dukkah combo with purple sprouting broccoli or griddled spring onions instead.

With thanks to Samantha Couzens for the photography

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