Spargel
With the onset of spring in Germany, white asparagus popularly nicknamed as the ‘White Gold’ tops the menu in the cuisines of many restaurants and houses. The word spargel came from the Persian word ‘Asparg’ which means shoot. Later with time the word variation led to the dropping of A from the Persian word and this way Spargel was named. Although green varieties of asparagus are more popular throughout the globe, yet the Germans prefer the white variety, which never receives sunrays reasonably for their sweet taste and delicate flavor compared to its green stepbrother. Moreover, this white veggie is high in nutrition containing potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium, vitamin A, Vitamin C and folic acid, and most importantly it is highly a low-calorie food.
Origin:
Grown almost in every state of Germany it was believed to be introduced by the Romans during their conquest. The cultivation of white Asparagus became popular in the mid 16th century when the monks tried to revive and enrich the cultivation of white gold mostly for medical purposes. A cool legend beautifully justifying the whiting of the Asparagus sidewise standing for the old proverb of necessity for the cause of invention believes that once a terrific hailstorm stroked the Germanic lands causing severe damage to the Asparagus field. People thus having no other option than to feed themselves with the ungrounded parts, and to their surprise they found it to be very tender, sweet and delicate to taste. Thus, the cultivation of this royal vegetable (was luxurious in the past, used as a symbol of royalty) began in the Germanic lands placing Asparagus an indomitable place in the German cuisine.
Importance of spargel in Germany:
Until and unless one does not visit the spargelzeit season in Germany, one could only refer to spargel just as a veggie. The cultivation practices and the harvesting operations of spargel are taken too seriously by the Germans. This festive season brings a river of joy among them, moreover since peeling of asparagus is very important before cooking, the Germans even organize peeling competition in such festive season marking the harvest of first white asparagus. However, unfortunately, spargel is expensive as the harvesting is short and labor intensive in nature. Moreover one has to be very careful in trusting the sellers while buying asparagus since the buyer is not allowed (only visual inspection) to touch the goods! The buyers must let the seller hand over the goods to them. Apart from these, the Germans follow several simple ettiques in the dining table while having asparagus. Serving of spargel is also done in special dishes, utensils maintaining the status of spargel as an elite vegetable. There are several traditional and modern dishes which are a variation of the former dishes.
Recipes:
The following spargel soup is prepared by adding cream with the heads of the spargel spears holding back until the last moment since these are believed to add luxury to the soup, as those spearheads are the best part of this white, phallic veggie. The given recipe is enough for six servings indulging a total time of 60 minutes for the preparation (20 minutes for preparation and 40 minutes for cooking). So, in such a short span of time, this amazing recipe can be prepared with ease.
Ingredients required:
Chopped Onion: 1 small
Butter: 2 tablespoons
Spargel: 1-2 lb, peeled and chopped, with their heads reserved
Fresh cream-1/2 cup
Chicken broth (or vegetable):6 cups
Salt to taste
Fresh ground pepper, to taste
Dry white wine
Parsley
Preparation:
Before cooking, peeling of asparagus is done. Potato peelers may serve the purpose. After peeling off the same, chop them into small pieces. Take a saucepan and add butter to it when heated, now, add chopped onions to the melted butter until translucent and light golden brown in color. Add pieces of asparagus removing the heads and keeping them aside. Steam the pieces for about 5 minutes. Add chicken/vegetable broth and then boil gently for about ½ an hour, check the softness of the pieces using a fork. Now, make a puree of the same in a blender and then return the pureed soup to the pan. The kept aside asparagus heads are now added and then cooked for about 5 minutes bringing at a simmer. Add fresh cream after turning down the heat. Don’t boil after adding cream. Taste the soup and add salt and add freshly ground pepper to taste. Add wine to enhance acidity. Allow the soup to cool.
Garnishing:
Refrigerate the prepared soup for about 4-5 hours. Take a cup or a medium sized bowl, pour the prepared soup into it, and add parsley leaves to garnish the soup. Your spargel soup is ready to serve!
This is one more amazing recipe of Spargel used in German cuisine
Ingredients required are:
White asparagus: 1 lb/person
Salt, Sugar: to taste
Butter: 3 tablespoons
The preparation time for this delicious recipe which is to be served with melted butter is about 40 minute.
Preparation:
The cleanly peeled asparagus are taken in a wide pan with lid filled with water halfway with their reserved heads tipping just out of the water. Gently boil the water and then add salt, sugar, and butter. Bring the heat to a simmer and then cover the pan with a fitting lid. After boiling the asparagus for about 10 minutes, check the softness of the spargel. Now, remove the white asparagus pieces from the pan removing the lid and then draining out the excess water and then place it on a pre-heated serving tray.
Serving:
Serve the prepared recipe with butter, ham, boiled potatoes, eggs or with Hollandaise sauce.*
*Preparation of Hollandaise sauce:
Ingredients required:
Butter: 1/2 cup
Egg yolks: 2
Salt: 1/4 tablespoon
Lemon juice: 2 tablespoons
Cayenne pepper: few grains
Method:
Keeping the heat at a simmer, melt the butter in a double boiler. Properly beat the egg yolks and then stirring continuously with a spoon or electric stirrer, add it to the melted butter. Now, gradually add two tablespoons of lemon juice to it. Stir the sauce until hot and thickened. Salt and pepper is added to the prepared sauce. 1 or 2 tablespoons of hot water is poured if the prepared sauce is too thick.
Your sauce is ready to be served as a topping over asparagus and other vegetable recipes.
Tips to be remembered:
For cooking of white asparagus, it must be peeled cleanly to remove the outer woody and fiber part. Using a potato peeler or asparagus peeler the operation can be carried out by holding the stalk of the asparagus in your dominant hand, using a sharp peeler the stalks resting on the palms are peeled just below the heads. After peeling, cut the ends along with the fibers.
You can always add this recipe on your menu the next time you throw a family get together or a birthday party. Your guests would love relishing this cuisine, we promise!