Pan-Roasted Asparagus with Mustard Beurre Monté
By Lan LamPublished on February 5, 2024
Time
30 minutes
Yield
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
Beurre Monté
3 tablespoons water 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces and chilled1 tablespoon stone-ground mustardAsparagus
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon unsalted butter 2 pounds thick asparagus, trimmedBefore You Begin
This recipe works best with asparagus that is at least ½ inch thick near the base. If using thinner spears, reduce the covered cooking time to 3 minutes and the uncovered time to 5 minutes. Do not use pencil-thin asparagus.
Instructions
- Bring water to simmer in small saucepan over medium-high heat; reduce heat to maintain very gentle simmer. Add 1 piece butter and cook, whisking constantly, until butter is melted, 20 to 30 seconds. Continue to cook, whisking in butter 1 piece at a time until all butter is incorporated and sauce has consistency of thin gravy, 3 to 4 minutes. Whisk in mustard and season with salt to taste. Reduce heat to lowest possible setting and cover to keep warm.
- Heat oil and butter in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. When butter has melted, add half of asparagus with tips pointed in 1 direction; add remaining spears with tips pointed in opposite direction. Using tongs, distribute spears in even layer (spears will not quite fit into single layer); cover and cook until asparagus is bright green and still crisp, about 5 minutes.
- Uncover and increase heat to high; season asparagus with salt and pepper. Cook until spears are tender and well browned along 1 side, 5 to 7 minutes, using tongs to occasionally move spears from center of pan to edge of pan to ensure all are browned. Season with salt and pepper to taste and transfer to serving dish. Whisk sauce vigorously to blend in any butterfat that has collected on surface. Spoon sauce over asparagus and serve immediately.
for the beurre monté
for the asparagus
Time
30 minutesYield
Serves 4 to 6Ingredients
Beurre Monté
Asparagus
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Beurre Monté
Asparagus
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Beurre Monté
Asparagus
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Beurre monté, emulsified melted butter, is a classic French preparation that can be drizzled over cooked meats, vegetables, pastas, and other dishes to add richness and a glossy appearance or used as a rich, creamy sauce base for pairing with a wide range of savory or sweet seasonings. Vigorously whisking cold butter into a measured amount of simmering water broke up the butterfat into tiny droplets that dispersed throughout the water, establishing a thick, creamy emulsion. Whisking stone-ground mustard into beurre monté produced a bold, rich, easy-to-make sauce that paired especially well with pan-roasted asparagus. For a simple stovetop cooking method that delivered crisp, evenly browned spears without the fuss of having to rotate each spear individually, we added a little butter to the skillet and covered the pan; the butter browned easily, and the water evaporating from it steamed the asparagus so that the spears cooked up crisp-tender and bright green.
Want more? Read the whole storyBefore You Begin
This recipe works best with asparagus that is at least ½ inch thick near the base. If using thinner spears, reduce the covered cooking time to 3 minutes and the uncovered time to 5 minutes. Do not use pencil-thin asparagus.
Instructions
- Bring water to simmer in small saucepan over medium-high heat; reduce heat to maintain very gentle simmer. Add 1 piece butter and cook, whisking constantly, until butter is melted, 20 to 30 seconds. Continue to cook, whisking in butter 1 piece at a time until all butter is incorporated and sauce has consistency of thin gravy, 3 to 4 minutes. Whisk in mustard and season with salt to taste. Reduce heat to lowest possible setting and cover to keep warm.
- Heat oil and butter in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. When butter has melted, add half of asparagus with tips pointed in 1 direction; add remaining spears with tips pointed in opposite direction. Using tongs, distribute spears in even layer (spears will not quite fit into single layer); cover and cook until asparagus is bright green and still crisp, about 5 minutes.
- Uncover and increase heat to high; season asparagus with salt and pepper. Cook until spears are tender and well browned along 1 side, 5 to 7 minutes, using tongs to occasionally move spears from center of pan to edge of pan to ensure all are browned. Season with salt and pepper to taste and transfer to serving dish. Whisk sauce vigorously to blend in any butterfat that has collected on surface. Spoon sauce over asparagus and serve immediately.
for the beurre monté
for the asparagus
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