Toasted sesame seeds, lemon juice and parsley are added to melted butter and drizzled over crisp asparagus.
I am so glad to be the first to review this great recipe. I loved the light nutty flavor the sesame seeds gave the asparagus and the fresh burst from the lemon. The flavors and textures went so well together. Thanks Shannon.....I am sure I will make this again.
Read More I am so glad to be the first to review this great recipe. I loved the light nutty flavor the sesame seeds gave the asparagus and the fresh burst from the lemon. The flavors and textures went so well together. Thanks Shannon.....I am sure I will make this again.
I made a lighter version of this recipe: 1. Toast sesame seeds over medium low heat in a skillet until golden brown, 3-4 minutes. No need to add butter or oil. Just stir frequently and don't leave them unattended or they will burn. Pour them onto a plate to cool and set aside. 2. In a medium skillet, simmer 1/2 cup of low sodium, fat free, chicken broth 3-4 minutes over medium high heat, it will reduce slightly. While broth simmers, measure out 3 tbsp. of butter. 3. Reduce heat to medium low and add the butter, 1 tbsp. at a time. The sauce will thicken as the butter is added. Continue to simmer an additional 1-2 minutes until the sauce is thickened. Add lemon juice and parsley, 4. Pour sauce over asparagus and sprinkle with sesame seeds. I only used a tbsp. The author's posted recipe is delicious as written but I can't eat a single serving of asparagus so I needed something a little bit lighter!
Fast, easy, simple, fresh tasting, and darn good. Just that simple. Love the lemon/sesame seed combo. I make it even easier and quicker by using already toasted sesame seeds!
Lemon, butter, & asparagus are a match made in heaven but add sesame seeds and you have a stellar dish. I used butter as opposed to margarine but I used a little less than called for. Personal preference. This plates up beautifully, tastes very bright and fresh, and I will definitely be making it again. Thanks so much for sharing:o)
This is a very good recipe. I peeled the bottom part of the asparagus. Then I mixed all the ingredients and poured it ontop of the asparagus and roasted it in a 400 degree oven for about 25-30 minutes. I omitted the margerine and used about 2 tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil. I also used chopped basil instead of the parsley. It was so good, even my young children enjoyed it!
Nice recipe! I bought some very thin asparagus, cooked it for maybe 3 to 4 minutes til just tender, drained, then quickly sauteed with toasted seeds (I agree, no need for butter if you prefer to omit it), a dash of sesame oil and garnished with a squeeze of lemon and the parsley. Quick, easy and delicious!
I wasn't too impressed. I thought the seasoning was off and the asparagus was mushy after boiling. A friend has since recommended that I should not boil and instead I should sear for a nice fresh flavor. I will do that the next time, but I will skip this recipe.
This recipe is delicious! I was looking for a slightly different spin on serving asparagus and found this recipe. The flavors are so fresh and blend perfectly to make a tasty and elegant side dish. My husband commented that he thought it could be served in a gourmet restaurant. Definitely a keeper!
I liked the flavor that the lemon added to the asparagus, the sesame seeds added to the look of the dish too. I did feel like there was too much butter used/left in the bowl. Next time I'd use about a 1/4 of a cup instead of a 1/3.
This is easy to prepare, fresh and delicious! I used a little less of butter called for in the recipe. I love the nutty flavor of the sesame seeds along with fresh lemon juice! The lemon juice adds a nice zing to the dish. The bright green color of the asparagus gives this a nice appeal with the brown toasted sesame seeds sprinkled all over. A very simple but good side dish! I served this along with, "Portuguese Pork with Red Peppers," "Sauteed Cherry Tomatoes with Garlic and Basil," and "Parsley Red Potatoes," all from this website.
Wonderful! Only addition I made was a clove of finely minced garlic. Sesame seeds were a nice twist!
This dish is bold in flavor. Don't serve it with anything other than a quiet main dish. I used butter rather than margarine and found it very rich. I think that if you skip the pan toasting of the seeds with the butter/margarine, it would alter the intended flavor drastically. Look forward to doing this again. Thanks for sharing your recipe Shannon!
This recipe is wonderful!! One of our favorite side dishes. I was wanting to fix this dish with grilled steak but did not have asparagus but did have some fresh broccoli so tried it. It is as good as the asparagus! I cook the broccoli spears ( or flowettes left in big pieces) until it is tender crisp, then follow recipe. As another reader suggested I use less sesame seeds and a tad more lemon juice. Hubby and I love this and eat it quite often for over a year now. Such a wonderful side dish for so many main dishes, like grilled salmom, steak, chicken etc.
My family of four tried this recipe to avoid serving cheese sauce.....again! I melted the butter which looked like a small lake in my pan. I liked the taste and I will make this again, but I will use only half the butter - maybe only a third of the butter and reduce the lemon juice by half to keep it from becoming too lemony. I want to convey that I really liked the flavour combination, but I need to cut down on the butter because of the calories. I will try this again. I rate this one as a 4 star - flavour was good.
I'm sure this is good, but I was looking for my Sesame Asparagus recipe and finally found the right old, dog-eared cookbook. I don't want to infringe on any copyright so I'll just say that this one is served room temperature. After peeling and lightly steaming the spears, they are marinated in rice vinegar, sesame oil, honey and soy or tamari sauce. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and lemon slices. Yum! And you can bring it to a party without worrying about how to keep it warm.
Delicious- the lemon, sesame seeds, and parsley really make it special. Careful not to cook the asparagus too much!
Very tasty. An easy way to kick this mild vegetable up a notch. I stir fried the asparagus in the wok then added the ingredients for a crunchier texture.
Did not have parsley so I left it out. It was excellent without it. Will be making again.
We make asparagus all the time and this was a great change from the norm. It had a great nutty taste almost... anyways it was fabulous!!!!
I have to be honest and say that I thought the proportions were off. I could not taste the lemon which would have been nice, and there were way too many sesame seeds. I followed the recipe as written in order to review it fairly. It would be fantastic with more lemon juice and way less sesame seeds. As written, it is no more than three stars. I will be trying this again, but with serious modifications. Thanks.
I made this as written. Everyone agreed that just plain steam asparagus was just as good, and less calories. 4 minutes of steam time did not make a dent in the veg. --had to double the time Update 9/07 please remember I like in the Alaska and we get no fresh produce, I am just realizing that this is slanting my reviews.
Really good and simple recipe. I messed up and without thinking added poppy seeds instead of sesame seeds - realized what I was doing while I was adding them and stopped at about a tablespoon. It had a good, gentle flavor with the poppy seeds. Toasted sesame seeds would be delicious, I'm sure. I'll be making this again - with the sesame seeds - soon.
Very tasty. I followed Spyce's advice for cutting a few calories and it was delicious. I overcooked the asparagus, but still good.
I'm sorry to say, I didn't actually use the sesame in this recipe as my family didn't want it. Despite this, it was delicious. The lemon and butter made it so flavorful. It was also very quick and easy.
I made this tonight, and it was delicious. Had some sauce left over, which was wonderful over grilled salmon!
My personal preference is less butter and sesame seeds but other than that, very good!
Great side and so easy to make. I have made this without the parsley, and uit turns out fine.
We love this light flavor. I buy my asparagus with this recipe in mind. It brings out a great flavor that is good with any meal.
I really had high hopes for this recipe, but it just didn't turn out the way I'd hoped. The lemon flavor wasn't strong, but the amount of butter and sesame seeds seemed excessive. I couldn't really get the seeds to toast (I've always toasted seeds in a dry pan before). When I poured the sauce over the asparagus, the seeds just clumped together on top. I will have to adjust this recipe as I like the idea. I plan to cut back on the butter and sprinkle dry, toasted sesame seeds on top after adding the sauce.
The sauce is excellent. The asparagus itself didn't seem to absorb all the flavors from the sauce, so it was a little bland in that sense, but if you put the sauce in a ramekin for dipping (and, truth be told, sipping) it's pretty good.
This recipe was great! I cut the asparagus into two-inch pieces then cooked in microwave with 1 tbs of water for 2 minutes, then drained. This cut down on cooking time and left a little bit of crunch. I used toasted and sliced almonds instead of sesame seeds and added some lemon zest. Perfect!
I love asparagus, but this recipe was only okay. It might be better if you go light on the sesame seeds and use more lemon juice.
this recipe is very easy and delish! we tossed the cooked asparagus with the sesame seeds in a tupperware container to spread evenly coat the asparagus with the sesame seeds. i will make it again but may add a little seasoning to give it a little more punch!
