Roasted Asparagus With Garlic

This roasted asparagus recipe complements almost any dish you choose to prepare alongside it (salmon, chicken, lamb, risotto, you name it). The real appeal, though? It’s incredibly easy. The elegant side dish cooks in the oven for just eight minutes and emerges tender, vibrantly hued, and full of flavor.

Why is this simple recipe such a standout? Before you slide it into the oven, the fresh asparagus spears get tossed in warmed olive oil that’s flavored with fragrant minced garlic, onion powder, and chopped fresh parsley. Infusing the oil first allows those aromatics to fully bond with the asparagus during the short cook time.

Worried about tough or stringy spears? This recipe calls for thin asparagus, which tends to be quite tender and delicate and usually requires less trimming than larger asparagus stalks. If you can only get your hands on thicker spears, slice off the pale woody ends from the whole bunch of asparagus (where the stalks turns from white to green) with a chef’s knife and use a vegetable peeler to shave the surface layer of each spear from about halfway up the stalk to the bottom. Larger spears will also need about 3 to 5 more minutes cooking time. 

Editor’s note: This recipe was originally published in Passover by Design by Susie Fishbein and first appeared on Epicurious in February 2011. Read more: How to Cook Asparagus