How to prep asparagus
 Asparagus is one of the easier vegetables to prep. Still, there are a few good tricks to know. Here’s my usual approach for just about every asparagus dish: First I rinse and dry them well. When I have some time and want a nice presentation, I’ll cut off and discard the bottom inch or so of the thick fibrous stem. Then I’ll peel the bottom 2-3 inches of the stems with a vegetable peeler. Peeling exposes the tender flesh inside. |
| When I have less time, I discard the entire bottom part. To figure out where to cut, I take one spear and, using both hands, break it in two. It will naturally break at the right spot. |  |
| Then I line the spears up and cut off the bottoms at that breaking point. |  |
| If I’m broiling asparagus or serving it drizzled with a sauce or vinaigrette, I leave the spears whole. For other dishes — sautés, stir-fries, soups, papillotes — I like to cut the spears on the bias into pieces 1-3 inches long. |  |
| Aside from making them look nice, the angled edges tend to catch onto the surrounding food and keep the asparagus from sinking to the bottom of the serving dish. |  |
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