How to cook sea asparagus

Also known as glasswort, sea asparagus is a little-known but truly amazing ingredient. Here's how to clean and cook them.

Sea asparagus is an ingredient well known by those who are lucky enough to live near the sea . Also known as glasswort, it was renamed due to its resemblance to the well-known vegetable. It can be used in many recipes, from first courses to salads and the characteristic that most identifies it is its high flavour .

Sea asparagus is a herbaceous plant that grows along the coasts in situations where the salinity of the soil exceeds 1% (unsustainable situation for all other forms of vegetation). It is a low-calorie ingredient (there are only 22 per 100 g of product), but rich in sodium, vitamins A and C, iron, iodine, bromine, potassium and calcium. Let's find out together how to clean them and how to cook them with some simple recipes.

How to clean sea asparagus and cook them

It is in season from spring until the first warm days, a period in which it tends to take on a reddish colour. It can be harvested along the coast or bought fresh at a fish market . In both cases, the procedure for cleaning sea asparagus does not change.

1. First wash it under running water.
2. Then, put it in a container and cover them with fresh water . This step is essential to remove some of its salinity.
3. If possible, we advise you to change the water at least a couple of times within 24 hours .
4. At this point the asparagus should be blanched in NOT salted boiling water for 10 minutes . Not only will you remove a little more salt, but you'll also clean them faster.
5. Once drained and left to cool, grab them with two fingers at the base and gently pull them in the opposite direction with the other hand: you will notice that they will slip off, obtaining a sort of woody sprig on one side and the edible green part on the other.

At this point you are ready to use sea asparagus in the recipes that most inspire you .

Sea asparagus: recipes

Because of their sapidity, sea asparagus goes well with ingredients with more delicate flavors and with fish first courses. Whatever recipe with sea asparagus (or glasswort) you wish to prepare, always remember not to use salt . They will be enough to regulate the flavor of the dish which, indeed, will be balanced with sweeter and more delicate flavors such as that of seafood.

To prepare the pasta with sea asparagus, sauté the oil, garlic and finely chopped chilli pepper. Add the blanched and cleaned glasswort and finally the pasta, cooked in the same water as the glasswort, sautéing over high heat. Serve savoring the scent of the sea that this dish gives off.

Always after having blanched them, you can sauté the sea asparagus in a pan with a drizzle of oil and a clove of garlic and serve them as a side dish to your fish main courses. In fact, they go very well with the most delicate meats such as trout, sea bream and sea bass, perhaps simply cooked in the oven in foil.

Finally, we suggest you try the omelette with sea asparagus , prepared by beating 4 eggs with a pinch of pepper and adding the blanched and cleaned asparagus.

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