British Asparagus Season is here

Typically in season from St George’s Day (23 April), British asparagus (hailed as the best) comes out to play. It’s delicate, savoury, and is the young shoot of a cultivated lily plant.

Asparagus is high in vitamins A C as well as potassium, iron and calcium. It’s great on it own, dressed with some salt and olive oil, in a quiche, or in pasta. Check out our fresh and healthy asparagus and pea orzo recipe below. 

Asparagus and Pea Orzo Recipe

This simple and fresh orzo recipe can all be made in one pan and takes approximately 30 minutes to prepare and cook. It’s as quick a weeknight dinner or a spring weekend lunch. The addition of pea and feta cheese in this recipe makes it packed with plant-based protein.

Ingredients (serves 2-4)

• 350g British asparagus, cut into bite-size pieces
• 225g orzo pasta
• 200g frozen peas (this recipe has used petit pois, but garden peas are fine)
• 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
• salt to taste (approx 1 tsp)
• handful fresh mint, finely chopped
• handful fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 50g crumbled feta or Greek salad cheese
• zest of half a lemon
• fresh parsley to serve

Method

1. In a large frying pan, heat 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil on a medium heat.

2. Add your minced garlic and let it toast until aromatic before adding chopped asparagus.

3. Allow the asparagus to cook in garlic and oil for about 2 minutes before adding frozen peas and half a teaspoon of salt. 

4. Let the vegetables soften for a further 5 minutes before adding about 100ml of room temperature water. 

5. Simmer the vegetables in the water for another 5 minutes before moving half of the vegetables off the heat and into a deep vessel to blitz. 

6. In the separate vessel, add about half a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil to the part-cooked peas, asparagus and garlic and blitz until a puree has formed. 

7. Meanwhile, in the pan, add your orzo to the remaining veg and garlic and stir, letting the orzo toast but not stick to the pan. 

8. Add your fresh, chopped herbs and about 200ml of water to the orzo and vegetables and stir. 

9. As the water beging to evaporate, gradually add the puree and use water to swill the last of the puree from the bowl / cup. 

10. Let the pasta and vegetables simmer in the liquid for about 10-15 minutes until the pasta is cooked. 

11. Serve the orzo with lemon zest, extra virgin olive oil, crumbled feta and more fresh parsley. Optional: add salt and pepper to taste.