Easy and Delicious Asparagus Recipes

From classic recipes like roasted asparagus and asparagus quiche to creative dishes like asparagus stir-fries and sheet pan meals, we've rounded up our favorite asparagus recipes for every meal. 

When spring comes, the first thing I am looking for at the farmer's market is asparagus. But lucky for us, asparagus is available almost all year long and as long as you know how to choose it, you can enjoy this tasty veggie all year long. 

Let this be your guide to this wonderful, green, stalky vegetable. Find all kinds of delicious recipes for dish side dishes, dinners, and more. You'll learn everything you need to know about picking, storing, and cooking with asparagus. 

Let's dig right in! Here are all our favorite asparagus recipes. 

Easy Asparagus Dinner Ideas

Asparagus is the perfect addition to so many dinner recipes from stir-fries to sheet pan meals and more. Here are some delicious ways to use asparagus in your main dish recipes.

One Pan Roasted Salmon, Sweet Potatoes, and Asparagus

382 CAL 25 MIN

This easy roasted salmon with sweet potatoes and asparagus is so easy to make and will quickly become a regular in your healthy eating routine.

One Pan Lemon Garlic Chicken and Asparagus

239 CAL 25 MIN

This twenty-minute Lemon Garlic Chicken and Asparagus is a simple, healthy meal with crispy chicken and asparagus served in a light lemon sauce. It's quick, easy to make, and packed with flavor.

Chicken and Asparagus Stir Fry

204 CAL 20 MIN

This easy Chicken and Asparagus Stir Fry is ready in less than 15 minutes and has the most delicious honey stir fry sauce.

Shrimp Fried Rice with Asparagus

327 CAL 20 MIN

Shrimp Fried Rice with Asparagus tastes better than your favorite Chinese takeout and is made with brown rice, asparagus, and plenty of shrimp.

Thai Basil Ground Beef Bowl

300 CAL 25 MIN

This Thai Basil Ground Beef Bowl makes the perfect twenty-minute weeknight meal and you won't believe the flavor! Served with cauliflower rice, it's a healthy meal you will make again and again.

Easy Salmon Stir Fry

386 CAL 25 MIN

Make this healthy and delicious Salmon Stir Fry in less than 20 minutes! Packed with tender chunks of salmon, lots of fresh vegetables, and the most amazing homemade teriyaki inspired stir-fry sauce.

Honey Garlic Chicken and Asparagus

253 CAL 20 MIN

A simple and healthy Honey Garlic Chicken and Asparagus made on a sheet pan that takes less than 10 minutes to cook will be a hit with the whole family.

Honey Garlic Shrimp Stir Fry

255 CAL 20 MIN

This Honey Garlic Shrimp Stir Fry is a quick and easy Asian dish that comes together in less than 20 minutes. It's packed with shrimp, veggies, and the most amazing honey garlic stir fry sauce.

Sheet Pan Pesto Chickpeas and Vegetables

420 CAL 50 MIN

Easy Sheet Pan Chickpeas and Vegetables roasted in the oven until perfectly cooked and topped with delicious basil pesto sauce.

Italian Chicken and Vegetable Skillet

276 CAL 1 HOURS

An easy one dish meal with Italian chicken, asparagus, zucchini, and tomatoes in a delicious sauce. Dinner in less than 30 minutes.

The Best Asparagus Side Dishes

Not sure what to do with that lovely bunch of asparagus you picked up at the farmer's market? Add it as a simple side to your favorite protein. Asparagus cooks quickly is full of flavor and is an elegant option when throwing a party or making a special meal. Here are some of our favorite side dishes featuring asparagus. 

Grilled Lemon Asparagus with Feta

82 CAL 15 MIN

Grilled lemon asparagus with feta is fresh, tangy, and incredibly flavorful. This Mediterranean-inspired side dish is perfect for the summertime, so pair it with your favorite grilled meat like chicken or salmon and enjoy!

Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad

287 CAL 30 MIN

This Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad with balsamic vinaigrette is easy to make, bursting with flavor. and anything but boring!

Simple Roasted Asparagus

53 CAL 15 MIN

These oven roasted asparagus are a healthy side dish and one of the best ways to cook asparagus. They come out crisp, slightly browned, and full of flavor. Add any spices you like.

Easy Grilled Asparagus

58 CAL 15 MIN

This grilled asparagus recipe is easy to make, healthy, and makes the perfect summer side dish! Ready in just 15 minutes, this asparagus is delicious with grilled meats, salads, salmon, grain bowls, and more.

Crispy Polenta with Asparagus

225 CAL 20 MIN

This easy Crispy Polenta with Asparagus and Creamy Tomato Sauce is a delicious vegetarian main dish or side dish.

Grilled Vegetable Salad

135 CAL 15 MIN

This Grilled Vegetable Salad with zucchini, asparagus, red onion, bell peppers. and mushrooms in a homemade balsamic dressing with feta cheese and arugula is the ultimate grilling side dish.

Marinated Grilled Vegetables

150 CAL 20 MIN

Make the most delicious marinated grilled vegetables using this secret trick! Adding the marinade after grilling the vegetables allows them to soak up all that delicious flavor.

Tasty Asparagus Breakfast Recipes

Asparagus and eggs have been together since the dawn of time as far as I'm concerned. Whatever genius came up with this delicious combo forever has a place in my heart. My favorite ways to combine asparagus with eggs include scrambles, quiche, frittatas, and more.

Asparagus Quiche

325 CAL 35 MIN

A healthy asparagus quiche made with fresh asparagus, red onion, garlic, and mozzarella cheese all baked in a tender and flaky pie crust makes a breakfast, lunch, or dinner your whole family will love.

Asparagus, Mushroom, and Feta Frittata

242 CAL 30 MIN

This Asparagus Frittata with mushrooms and feta cheese is the ultimate dish for an easy breakfast, brunch, or dinner.

Vegetable and Hashbrown Egg Casserole

177 CAL 40 MIN

This simple Vegetable and Hashbrown Egg Casserole is the perfect hearty meal to make to feed a crowd. This healthy version uses fresh mushrooms and zucchini combined with shredded hashbrowns and cheese!

Veggie Scramble with Avocado

279 CAL 20 MIN

This protein-packed vegetable egg scramble topped with avocado is a delicious and fast breakfast that will keep you fueled all morning! It's also low carb, Whole30, and Paleo friendly.

Quinoa Egg Muffins

160 CAL 45 MIN

Quinoa Egg Muffins are made with broccoli, sundried tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese for a crave-worthy breakfast that keeps your belly full and your taste buds happy. These easy egg muffins are perfect for on-the-go breakfasts and healthy snacks alike!

How to Choose Asparagus

When purchasing asparagus, look for stalks that are firm, smooth, and straight. You'll want your asparagus to be that nice, dark green color, tapering down to a little white at the bottom.  If it's dull, lifeless, limp, or wrinkly, don't buy it, it's been sitting there awhile.

You'll also want to make sure the tips of the asparagus are tightly closed and not sprouting anything or spreading out. You also want to avoid any that have mushy tips.

There's a reason you'll often find asparagus sitting in a nice ice bath or on top of a pad of water — it keeps the stalk from drying out. If it's not in water, make sure the ends aren't all dried up and starting to break apart. The moister the base, the fresher the stalks will be.

How to Store Asparagus

Since you probably purchased the asparagus sitting on top of something moist, it's a good idea to keep this going once you get home. You only want the bottoms to be wet though. That means, no washing the spears until you are ready to eat them. Never, ever, soak it for a long time either unless you like your asparagus mushy.

It's okay to refrigerate, just cut a little bit off the ends and stand the whole bunch up in a jar or container with a little bit of cold water on the bottom. You can cover the bunch lightly with a plastic bag and leave it in the fridge up to four days.

If this preparation is too tall for your fridge or seems like too much work, you can also wrap the ends in a wet paper towel, then place the entire bunch in a plastic bag and put it in your veggie crisper. Don't seal the bag tightly, you'll want to leave it nice and loose to allow for airflow.

How to Prep Asparagus

Before cooking asparagus, wash it, rinse it, and pat it dry to make sure you remove any debris. 

You'll want to remove the woody ends since they are fibrous and tough to chew. You can do this by bending the end, the asparagus will naturally break right where the woody spot begins. If you want a more uniform length to your asparagus, you can always take a handful, line the tops up, and slice the bottoms off altogether.

Some people like to use a peeler to shave down the bottoms of thicker stalks of asparagus or even peel the entire asparagus stem to make it softer. This isn't necessary but can make the asparagus stalks more tender and easier to chew. 

Health Benefits of Asparagus

According to the USDA, one cup of raw asparagus (about six large spears) contains 27 calories, 3 grams of protein, less than 1 gram of fat, 5 grams of carbs, 3 grams of fiber, and 3 grams of sugar. You'll also be giving your body calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, vitamin C, and folate with every delicious bite. 

Additionally, asparagus has a number of health benefits. 

• It's low calorie. Go ahead a stalk up on asparagus (see what I did there?). If you are on a low-calorie diet or watching your weight, asparagus is a great vegetable to add to your meal planning. For every six stalks you eat, you're only consuming 27 calories. That means you could eat a (literal or figurative) whole bunch of asparagus and get away with only adding about 100 calories to your daily count. Of course, be sure to take into account how you prepare your asparagus as well. Add any oils = add additional calories.
• It's low in sodium. I think it's always a good idea to watch your sodium intake. Although your body does need some sodium to take care of everyday bodily processes, too much can be bad for your blood pressure. Sodium can also make you hold on to water, which is taxing on your kidneys and circulatory system and gives you that awful bloated feeling.
• Asparagus is good for your bones. One serving of asparagus contains 32 mg of calcium, a necessary mineral your bones and teeth need to stay strong and healthy. Calcium is also needed by your body to make your muscles contract, signal your nerves, and help to secrete some hormones and enzymes. If you don't eat dairy, then making sure you find calcium in the vegetable and fruit source you eat is very important.
• It's full of fiber. Fiber is good for keeping you fuller, longer. One cup of asparagus provides 13 percent of your daily recommended intake of fiber. Fiber can help regulate your digestive system, feed your good gut bacteria, and relieve constipation (like anything else, though, be careful not to overdo it).
• It's great for your cardiovascular system. The fiber content in asparagus can also reduce your risk of heart disease and help your body maintain its blood sugar levels. Fiber can also help reduce your cholesterol levels, which, in turn, helps lower your risk for stroke or heart disease.
• It's good for your blood sugar. Asparagus contains the nutrient chromium, which is a mineral that helps your pancreas produce more insulin, a hormone that absorbs glucose. If you eat asparagus regularly, it can help your blood sugar levels stabilize.
• Asparagus is good for your liver. The nutrient choline is present in asparagus, and in addition to keeping your liver healthy, it also is responsible for maintaining your cells and creating neurotransmitters. Eating enough foods that contain choline also can reduce your risk of dementia, heart disease, and cancer.