Nitrate & Nitrite Free Steamed Asparagus with Brown Butter
Asparagus season deserves a recipe this good. Fresh spears are steamed just until they turn vivid green and bend with a little give — not mushy, not raw — then finished with a pour of nutty, golden-brown butter that makes the whole dish smell incredible. It's the kind of side dish that looks restaurant-worthy but comes together in a single skillet and a small saucepan. For anyone navigating nitrate and nitrite concerns, fresh vegetables and plain dairy are naturally free of the cured-meat preservatives that make label-reading such a chore. Every ingredient here — asparagus, unsalted butter, sea salt, fresh parsley, and optional thyme — is exactly what it says it is, with no hidden additives to second-guess. The brown butter is the real star. Cooking it in a light-colored pan lets you watch the milk solids shift from pale gold to deep amber, and pulling it off the heat at just the right moment gives you that toasty, almost caramel-like depth without any bitterness. Drizzled over the warm spears with a scatter of fresh herbs, it turns a simple vegetable into something you'll want to make on repeat.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
- 1 lb fresh asparagus, woody ends snapped off
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 2 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Arrange the asparagus in a single layer in a large skillet. Add enough cold water to reach about 1/4 inch up the sides of the pan. Cover and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then steam for 3–5 minutes, until the spears are bright green and just tender when pierced at the thickest point with a paring knife — they should bend slightly but not flop.
- 2
Transfer the asparagus to a serving platter using tongs and discard the steaming water. Pat the skillet dry or use a separate small light-colored saucepan for the butter.
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