Grilled Asparagus Salad with Olive Oil and Parmesan
Asparagus is one of those vegetables that lets you know the season is changing. Like English peas or radishes, asparagus is a harbinger of spring, and I always get incredibly excited when I see it start to pop up at my local farmers’ market.
Every year as a young cook I would patiently wait for spring to set in and the first deliveries of fresh spring vegetables to grace our kitchens. Year after year I would find myself preparing a grilled asparagus salad as one of the first specials from the new spring menu, and I grew to treasure the pencil-thin, bright green stalks that worked so perfectly on the grill.
This salad is great as a side dish for a larger meal or as an appetizer for a small get-together. You can prepare the salad as one large serving or plate it individually for your guests. Either way this salad should be served warm, and with a fork and knife. While long lines of perfectly grilled asparagus are beautiful on a plate, they are less than convenient to eat gracefully, a knife will help break the pieces up into manageable bites.
To prepare the salad, preheat your grill and oil the asparagus with 1 – 2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil. Season the asparagus with salt/pepper and grill until just cooked. Ideally, the asparagus will be crisp and flavorful, and not wilted. It really only takes 2 – 3 minutes to cook the asparagus fully.
Once the asparagus is cooked, arrange the spears on a plate and season them again with more olive oil and fresh-squeezed lemon juice. Top the asparagus with parmesan, diced hard-boiled eggs and fresh herbs before serving.
For the grilling portion of this recipe, I like to use a medium-bodied olive oil that will work well with a high heat cooking method. I reserve the lighter, fruitier olive oil for the dressing where it can add to the dish and blend with the fresh lemon, and parmesan cheese.
Grilled Asparagus Salad with Olive Oil and Parmesan.
Course: salads, sidesCuisine: MediterraneanDifficulty: Easy2
servings10
minutes10
minutesCelebrate the start of spring with this delicious grilled asparagus salad. Topped with parmesan cheese, hard-boiled egg and fruity extra virgin olive oil, this is the perfect side dish for a light meal of pan roasted fish or grilled chicken.
Ingredients
- For the grilled asparagus
1bunchasparagus spears, bottoms trimmed away
2tbspmedium-bodied extra virgin olive oil
1tspkosher salt
- For the toppings/dressing
2tbsplight-bodied aromatic extra virgin olive oil
2tbspfresh-squeezed lemon juice
1/4cupparmesan cheese
2eachhard-boiled eggs, diced
saltto taste
pepperto taste
Directions
- Preheat your grill and allow it to get good and hot.
- Season the asparagus with medium-bodied olive oil and kosher salt
- Grill the asparagus until just cooked, you want the asparagus to retain a nice crunch when finished.
- Arrange the grilled asparagus on a plate.
- Dress the asparagus with lemon juice and light-bodied extra virgin olive oil.
- Top the dressed asparagus with parmesan cheese and hard-boiled eggs.
- Garnish the salad with fresh herbs and cracked black pepper.
- Enjoy!
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