Grilling: Asparagus Wrapped in Prosciutto With Lemon
I don't feel the need to gussy up asparagus on the grill; just a little olive oil, salt, and pepper is all you need to make them delicious. But every once in a while, I have the desire to go all fancy-pants with these green spears of goodness, and one of those moments hit me this past weekend.
I really didn't do too much differently. Instead of salt, I wrapped each thick spear in a slice of prosciutto. Then after the asparagus came off the grill, I hit them with some lemon and lemon zest. These two simple variations lifted the asparagus from a common grilled veggie into the realm of greatness. The prosciutto, although slightly overpowering, delivered the salty with a nice touch of ham, and the lemon freshened it all up with a tang that lingered pleasantly on the tongue.
Grilled Asparagus Wrapped in Prosciutto with Lemon
Ingredients
1 bunch of large asparagus, washed, tough ends snapped off
4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto
1 lemon, zested and cut in half
Extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
2 bamboo skewers, soaked in water for 30 minutes
Procedure
1. Wrap each asparagus spear in 1 slice of prosciutto, or 1/2 a slice if the slices are large. Thread spears onto the skewers, with 1 skewer going through the bottom of the asparagus and the other going through the top. Drizzle olive oil over the skewered asparagus, and season with black pepper to taste.
2. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and spread coals out evenly over the charcoal grate. Place lemons halves, cut side down, and the asparagus on the grill over high heat. Cook asparagus until tender and prosciutto crisps, about 3-5 minutes per side. Cook lemon halves until lightly browned, about 2-3 minutes.
3. Remove asparagus from the grill. Immediately squeeze the lemon halves over them, and sprinkle with lemon zest. Serve hot or at room temperature.
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7 Comments:
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Sylviahelen at 9:50PM on 06/12/09
this is one of my "other" favorite ways to do asparagus. like you, i love to grill them exactly the same way... yummers!
kristygarr at 11:20PM on 06/12/09
I love to make this and tuck a few blue cheese crumbles inside the proscuitto.
WSLunch at 7:01AM on 06/13/09
I like to grill the asparagus first, dress them with a little olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper, then spread a small slice of proscuitto with montrachet or herbed goat cheese and roll that around a bundle of two to four asparagus. (Or individually, if you're feeling indulgent.)
You can always pop them back on the grill to crisp up the proscuitto and warm the cheese.
Thanks for your recipe and inspriation for weekend grilling.
CJ McD at 10:24AM on 06/13/09
I'm going to do this tomorrow ~ if it doesn't rain AGAIN! Maybe with some pancetta which I happen to have. Asparagus is also delicious oven roasted and then sprinkled with lemon zest and chopped hard-boiled eggs.
Thanks for a great recipe.
duncan1205 at 10:38PM on 06/13/09
My mouth is watering!!
ltunick at 2:08PM on 06/17/09
I usually grill my asparagus; but with the proscuitto it never looked so tasty! And with WSLunch's idea of a few bleu cheese crumbles, ooh,my mouth is watering!
sassy at 7:46PM on 06/17/09