Feral Asparagus Girl Summer
coming in hot 🌱
The asparagus you can forage in fields (rather than supermarkets) is often called wild asparagus, which isn’t strictly correct. Wild animals and plants are, and always have been, ungovernable, if you will. Think: porcini, mountain lions. Feral animals and plants, on the other hand, are formerly cultivated animals and plants that either escaped captivitiy or were released into the wild. Think: asparagus, hogs, dogs, and horses. So, the asparagus that you find out and about in the forest and plains: feral, not wild. Asaparagus on the loose! It’s unfortunate that the word feral brings to mind trash-stealing hogs, subway rats, or girls in the club, ca. summer 2022. On a separate note, I think that after 2023’s #CleanGirlEra, #FeralRatSummer is full steam ahead (thanks largely to Charli XCX’s Brat).
Feral Asparagus 101
After that lengthy intro, I’m ashamed to admit: I did not forage these wild asparag(i) myself. I purchased them in a shop. Should you want to forage them yourself, there are lots of good resources online.
They’re long, skinny, green, and they taste the same as regular green asparagus, but more tender and less crunchy. I think they look like the straws that farmers chew on in cartoons, just lusher and greener.
If you have any intel on wild/feral asparagus, please let me know.
On The Menu Today
wild asparagus & passatelli in brodo
wild asparagus focaccia (+ a stinging nettle focaccia, if you care/dare)
wild asparagus tonnato
