Spring asparagus complements pasta perfectly, pairing tender al dente vegetables with tender al dente pasta. A simply genius combo!
Sometimes, ingredients just work well together—no matter their texture.
Just think about risotto. That’s a whole dish of complementary textures: the soft melted cheese and the tender rice softened even further when stirred and the starch is released.
Pairing asparagus with pasta is smart because these are two foods that are best served al dente, which means “to the tooth” in Italian. So, the food has just enough of an exterior “bite”–just like perfectly cooked asparagus and pasta do.
You can create whole meals and dishes playing with textures in this way, just as you do by combining ice creams with syrups or crunchy nibbles, depending on your mood and what your mouth and tummy are craving that day.
The Trick to Perfect Al Dente Pasta
It’s important to experiment with pastas to find which ones work well for you. For example, lately, I keep forgetting about my angel hair pasta because I’m a little too busy with the rest of the recipe and, consequently, the pasta surpasses the al dente point. So, I’m experimenting with bucatini and thin spaghetti right now instead. Bucatini is a good type of pasta to pair with this dish.
Try cooking this pasta when you want an al dente, long, thin pasta and don’t want it to fill you as much as, say, fettuccini or linguine would. Bucatini is unique because it’s like a long, hollow pipe. They did this to allow water to transport through the pasta and help it cook evenly and to the tooth!
The trick for perfectly al dente pasta is to remove the rapidly boiling pasta about a minute and a half before it’s done-done, by that I mean limp, to get it perfectly al dente.
How do I store this pasta?
I store pasta in airtight containers in the fridge for three to four days, safely. Pasta does not freeze well with a sauce on it. So separate them if you’re going to freeze it. Thaw by placing the baggy in the microwave on defrost or steam.
Serving Suggestions
Serve this with a simple salad, a cold Riesling or Sauv Blanc, some toasted garlic bread (I like to use my Easy Homemade Buttermilk Bread and toast it fried in garlic butter, YUM!) and a sumptuous dessert, like my No-Bake Chocolate Eclairs.
Asparagus Pasta Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound asparagus preferably thin
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 medium lemon
- 1 ounce Parmesan cheese plus more for serving
- 1 pound dried spaghetti or other long pasta
- 4 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt divided
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes optional
- Fresh basil leaves for serving optional
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Trim the asparagus and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Mince the garlic. Grate the zest and juice the lemon to get 3 tablespoons of juice. Grate the Parmesan cheese.
- Cook the pasta in boiling water until just shy of al dente, about 9 minutes. Meanwhile, start cooking the asparagus.
- In a skillet, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add asparagus, salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes if using. Cook until asparagus is bright green and tender, about 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, then stir in lemon zest and juice.
- Reserve 1 cup pasta water, then drain pasta. Add pasta and reserved water to the skillet. Cook, stirring, until pasta is al dente and water is mostly absorbed.
- Remove from heat. Stir in Parmesan and remaining olive oil. Serve with additional Parmesan and fresh basil if desired.
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