Shaved asparagus with lemon dressing makes an elegant side to your meal and wakes up the palate with every bite. It also makes for a great presentation and turns even a simple meal into an elegant one.
This salad is fresh, bright, interesting, intriguing and made with shaved asparagus and the same dressing I use for my roasted asparagus with mozzarella. I never realized that raw asparagus tasted so good. The only thing that’s absolutely required for this recipe is using thick stalk asparagus for easy shaving. Can you imagine trying to shave those skinny pencil ones? That’s an invitation to madness right there.
I tried shaving off a stalk while holding it and it was so frustrating because I would either end up with a thick piece at the end or the top would break off and I would end up with 1 inch random chunks of asparagus all over the place. Not a good time to talk to me when that happens.
Then common sense hit and I realized all I had to do was lay that sucker down on the board and peel it from one edge to the next. It’s even easier if you shave one strip off, then flip the stalk onto the flat side so it doesn’t wobble.
There was a point where my peeler hit the cutting board which prevented me from continuing. No problem. All I did was bring it to the edge of my cutting board and I was able to get a few more strips in. See the photos.
Don’t worry about the tops breaking off or strips breaking. Who cares? It will get eaten and you’ll have more strips. This shouldn’t be stressful. Just do what you can and transfer the strips into a bowl.
The dressing is simple and can be made in a measuring cup. Just whisk it with a fork then drizzle it all over the asparagus and cheese. Now toss, toss, toss.
Serve with just about anything or even by itself with a nice hunk of bread. Shaved asparagus with lemon dressing is refreshing and it may even put a smile on your face.
You can make this ahead and it’s delicious even the next day. The stalks will soften from sitting in the dressing, but who cares?
Some suggestions to serve shaved asparagus with lemon dressing with:
Shake and bake pork chops or any of my pork recipes
Slow roast chicken or any of my chicken recipes
Grilled Greek style lamb chops or with these beef and lamb recipes
Roasted crispy salmon cakes or these seafood recipes
If you loved this shaved asparagus with lemon dressing recipe then try more sides:
Roasted Brussels sprouts with pear and walnuts
Garlic butter mushrooms with Cognac and tarragon
Creamy cheesy cauliflower gratin
Roasted carrots with butter and dill
Life is too short for mediocre food.
Shaved Asparagus with Lemon Dressing
PRINT RECIPE PIN RECIPE SAVE RECIPEIngredients
- 1 pound thick stalk asparagus
- ½ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
Dressing:
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 garlic clove minced
- Kosher salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Trim, or snap off the woody ends of the asparagus. It should only be about 1 ½ inches, more or less from the bottoms.
Shave asparagus:
- Lay one stalk on its side along the edge of the cutting board. With a vegetable peeler, shave one long strip. It’s ok if it breaks or the tip completely comes off as you will see that happened to me in the pictures in the post. Flip the stalk over so the flat edge is on the bottom to keep it from wobbling, and continue to shave the stalk. Repeat with remaining asparagus.
- Transfer the asparagus shavings into a large bowl along with the grated Pecorino cheese.
Make the dressing:
- In a measuring cup, combine the dressing ingredients and mix it up with a fork or small whisk. Taste the dressing and add enough salt and pepper to your taste.
- Drizzle dressing over the asparagus and toss to coat.
- Taste and adjust for salt and pepper.
Notes
Nutritional Information
I don't post the nutritional value because I don't trust the accuracy of the nutritional apps. I’m not a nutritionist and don't want to post misinformation.
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