This Sautéed Asparagus Salad is a delicious balance of sweet, earthy and bright flavors with a satisfying blend of crisp and tender textures. It’s an incredibly simple, yet elegant salad featuring tender asparagus, fresh lemon juice, crunchy pine nuts and tart tomatoes bites – all tossed together in a peppery bed of fresh arugula.
⭐Asparagus Salad Recipe Highlights⭐
- Simple Ingredients: So long as you’re making this in the Spring or Summer, everything should be fairly easy to find in your nearest major grocery store.
- Delicious Flavors: Bright, earthy, delicate, peppery and umami-packed – this salad is a satisfying balance of fresh veggies and seasonal flavors.
- Adaptable Recipe: Add or swap ingredients here and there depending on availability and preference. Check out the recommendations below for different ways change things up while staying true to the original given recipe.
What’s Inside
- Fresh Produce:
- asparagus spears – remove the woody ends of the asparagus and cut into bite-sized pieces
- medium leek – thinly sliced then wash to remove hidden dirt
- garlic – finely minced
- lemon – use all the zest and about half the juice
- parsley – finely chopped
- arugula – also known as rocket if you’re in the UK
- Misc Kitchen Staples:
- sun-dried tomatoes – Packed in oil is best because it has a more intense tomato flavor, but you can use semi-dried tomatoes if that’s all you have.
- pine nuts – Bonus points if you use toasted pine nuts.
- parmesan – Parmesan and asparagus are too good of a pairing not to include here.
- oil & butter – Salty dairy pairs great with asparagus, but you can omit the butter and use 2 tablespoons of olive oil if you prefer.
- salt & pepper – Don’t forget to taste and season at the end!
Substitutions And Additions
A few tips and ideas to make this asparagus salad perfect for you:
Add +
- + Bacon or Pancetta: Fry until crispy then chop and add to this salad for an extra boost of flavor.
- + Chickpeas or White Beans: Pack in a little extra protein and fiber with a can of chickpeas or white beans. It will provide and extra, creamy texture and make for a super filling salad.
- + Pasta: Turn this simple salad into a pasta salad you can enjoy as a main dish by tossing it into freshly boiled pasta. This is what I do to extend the life and enjoyment of my leftovers. Highly recommend!
Swap >>
- Parmesan >> Feta cheese and goat cheese are great additions to use as a cheese sub. They’re more tangy and creamy than parmesan, but still provide a salty pop of flavor.
- Pine Nuts >> Try this with almonds or walnuts instead if pine nuts aren’t on hand.
- Leeks >> Leeks have a delicate onion-flavor that’s not too overpowering. If you don’t have leeks available or don’t mind the allium flavor, feel free to use shallots or onion instead.
More Salad Recipes To Check Out
- Strawberry Feta Salad With Candied Hazelnuts
- Greek Salad With Chickpeas
- Chickpea Mediterranean Salad With Quinoa
- Chicken & Avocado Pesto Salad
- Honey Mustard Quinoa Apple Salad With Crispy Shallots
Enjoy!
Let me know if you try this Sautéed Asparagus Salad recipe! Leave a comment and review with your thoughts. I always appreciate the feedback and serving suggestions that you come up with!
Recipe
Sautéed Asparagus Salad with Sun-Dried Tomato
Yield:
4-6 servings
Prep Time:
15 minutes
Cook Time:
15 minutes
Total Time:
30 minutes
This asparagus salad is a delicious medley of zesty, crisp, tender and salty flavors and textures all tossed in a bright a vibrant, garden-fresh package!
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp salted butter (or more olive oil)
- 1 lb asparagus stalks, woody ends removed and cut into 1½-inch pieces
- 1 medium leek, thinly sliced and rinsed
- 1 tsp salt, divided + more to taste
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drain and chopped (120g | 4oz)
- 1 lemon - use all the zest & about half the juice (30 ml)
- 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (30g)
- 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped - measure after chopping (12g)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper + more to taste
- 2 oz fresh arugula (60g)
- 2 tbsp grated parmesan (10g)*
Need help converting to weights? Check out my cups to grams Conversion Guide.
Instructions
- Warm a large pan with oil and butter over a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the asparagus, leeks and ½ tsp salt. Sauté about 3-4 minutes until asparagus is tender and crisp.
- Add garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts and lemon zest. Cook another 1-2 minutes.
- Turn off the heat. Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice, pine nuts and parsley. Mix everything until well combined. Set aside for a moment.
- In a large bowl: toss together arugula, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, ½ tsp salt and pepper.
- Add the cooked asparagus mixture to the arugula along with the grated parmesan. Toss once more until well combined. Taste and season with extra salt, pepper, lemon or parmesan as you see fit and enjoy.
Notes
- Make sure to use a vegetarian parmesan cheese if you need this to be vegetarian friendly.
- Feel free to swap out the pine nuts for toasted almonds of walnuts instead.
- Store leftover salad in an airtight container and keep in the fridge 1-2 days.
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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