If you've been following me for a while, you know I spend a lot more time baking cookies than cooking vegetables. But lately I've been trying to balance things out with a few easy and (hopefully) interesting vegetable sides. This Coconut Curry Roasted Asparagus is one I've enjoyed making over and over this season.
It's quick, low effort, and made on a single sheet pan (always a plus). More importantly, it solves my personal asparagus problem: I want to like it more than I do. Asparagus's flavor isn't my favorite, but tossing it with the unrefined coconut oil, curry powder, a little mustard and toasted coconut covers up whatever it is about the flavor I don't like. That being said, I have plans for swapping the asparagus for green beans soon!
More on Why this Works
You can roast asparagus with just oil and salt, but adding coconut oil and curry powder gives it a deeper, slightly Caribbean-inspired flavor. The mustard adds a pop of tart, while the toasted coconut just adds more texture and more flavor. I use Bob's Red Mill unsweetened. Angel flake might be a little weird here. What I do not find weird is the unrefined coconut oil which is the type that retains its coconut flavor. If you want less coconut flavor you can use refined or any other oil. And honestly? If you want NO coconut flavor you could try swapping the coconut for chopped peanuts.
So here's the recipe. I hope I haven't scared you away, but I need a "side project" so I'm adding these easy vegetable sides.
Recipe
Coconut Curry Asparagus
Ingredients
- ½ pound asparagus trimmed (about 6 oz after trimming)
- 1 ½ teaspoons coconut oil softened or melted
- ½ teaspoon spicy brown mustard (or Dijon)
- ⅝ teaspoon curry powder
- ⅛ teaspoon sugar
- ¼ cup finely chopped red onion (yellow or white okay too)
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ tablespoons unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1-2 teaspoons lime juice (or a splash of apple cider vinegar)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Take out your worst rimmed baking pan or line a nice one with parchment paper. I keep a heavy duty well worn one just for vegetables.
- Prep asparagus. Trim woody ends and spread asparagus in a single layer on the sheet pan.
- Make the curry mixture. In a small bowl, stir together the coconut oil, mustard, curry powder and sugar until smooth. Stir in the chopped red onion and red pepper flakes.
- Coat the asparagus. Spoon the mixture over the asparagus and toss well to coat evenly. (Hands work best, but expect them to turn yellow from the curry)
- Sprinkle evenly with salt and black pepper.
- Roast for 8 minutes (6 if using very thin asparagus) then pull from the oven and toss in the coconut. Return to the oven for another 4 to 6 minutes or until the asparagus is tender and lightly browned and coconut is toasted.
- Squeeze a little lime juice (or drizzle vinegar) over the top just before serving.
Notes
The lime juice or vinegar at the end brightens the curry and keeps the dish from tasting flat.
If your asparagus is very thin, reduce the roasting time slightly.
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