Asparagus

Name: Asparagus
Prep time: 2 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 12 min
Yield: 2 servings
Ingredients: 1 tin asparagus (tinned) (Use the asparagus with its canning liquid intact — you will need the liquid for the bain-marie warming step.); 1 pat (approximately 1 tablespoon) fresh butter or tinned butter (such as 'Denmark' brand) (A 'pat' is roughly a tablespoon-sized knob of butter. Use fresh unsalted butter if available. The original recipe also permits maître d'hôtel butter or anchovy butter as an optional substitute.); 1 squeeze (approximately half a lime) lime (A single squeeze of juice over the finished dish — do not use the whole lime.); 1 pat (approximately 1 tablespoon) maître d'hôtel butter or anchovy butter (optional) (Optional. May be used in place of plain butter. Maître d'hôtel butter is butter worked with parsley and lemon. Anchovy butter is butter blended with anchovy paste. Either will add a more complex, savoury finish.)

A simple, elegant Colonial-era preparation of tinned asparagus warmed gently in a bain-marie and finished with butter and a squeeze of fresh lime. The recipe is refreshingly unfussy — no sauces, no toast, just honest flavour.

⏱ Prep: 2m

🍳 Cook: 10m

⏰ Total: 12m

🍽 Servings: 2 servings

Ingredients

1 tin asparagus (tinned) (Use the asparagus with its canning liquid intact — you will need the liquid for the bain-marie warming step.)
1 pat (approximately 1 tablespoon) fresh butter or tinned butter (such as 'Denmark' brand) (A 'pat' is roughly a tablespoon-sized knob of butter. Use fresh unsalted butter if available. The original recipe also permits maître d'hôtel butter or anchovy butter as an optional substitute.)
1 squeeze (approximately half a lime) lime (A single squeeze of juice over the finished dish — do not use the whole lime.)
1 pat (approximately 1 tablespoon) maître d'hôtel butter or anchovy butter (optional) (Optional. May be used in place of plain butter. Maître d'hôtel butter is butter worked with parsley and lemon. Anchovy butter is butter blended with anchovy paste. Either will add a more complex, savoury finish.)

Instructions

1Choose a saucepan large enough to hold the sealed tin of asparagus comfortably. Fill it with enough water to come at least halfway up the side of the tin. Place the saucepan on the hob over a medium heat and bring the water to a gentle simmer — you want hot water, not a rolling boil. This gentle, indirect heat is the bain-marie method and is key to warming the asparagus without overcooking it.
2Place the sealed tin of asparagus into the saucepan of hot water. Allow it to sit in the hot water for approximately 5 minutes, or just until you can feel through the tin that its contents are hot. Do not leave it any longer than necessary — the asparagus will soften and deteriorate quickly. As soon as it is hot, remove the tin from the water using tongs or a cloth.
3Open the tin carefully — the tin and its contents will be hot, so use a cloth or oven gloves. Drain away the liquid from the tin, discarding it. The asparagus should be hot and tender at this point. Work quickly from here so the asparagus stays warm.
4Carefully turn the drained asparagus out onto a warm serving dish. To warm a dish, you can run it under hot water and dry it, or place it briefly in a low oven. Handle the asparagus gently — the spears will be soft and fragile after heating and can break apart easily.
5Place a pat of fresh butter — or your tinned Denmark butter, or the optional maître d'hôtel or anchovy butter — directly on top of the hot asparagus. The heat of the asparagus will begin to melt it. Squeeze a small amount of fresh lime juice over the top. Serve immediately. Do not add any white sauce, and — as the original author insists with some force — absolutely no toast.