Grilled Asparagus with Vegetable Crumble Recipe

What’s not to love about this Grilled Asparagus with Vegetable Crumble Recipe. It’s hard to improve on asparagus served in the classic way, with a hollandaise sauce or a little mayonnaise on the side. Use vegan hollandaise sauce or mayonnaise for a completely plant-based recipe.

British 5 Mins 25 Mins Easy Serves 4

Image: Raymond Blanc

Ingredients

For the grilled asparagus:

20 green asparagus spears, woody ends removed
150ml refined olive oil

For the vegetable crumble

3 tbsp olive oil
80g baby courgettes (about 2½), pulsed in a food processor for 30 seconds
80g cauliflower, pulsed in a food processor for 30 seconds
30g banana shallot, finely diced
½ red chilli, finely chopped
3 large pinches smoked paprika
1 pinch sea salt
80ml water
2 tbsp lemon juice
10g parsley, chopped
5g chives, chopped

Method

Lay five spears side by side and secure them together with two wooden skewers (thread these through one at each end, avoiding the tips so that the spears are kept straight).
Repeat with the remaining three batches of five.
Blanch in plenty of boiling water for 3 minutes, then immediately plunge them into cold water to stop the cooking and dry thoroughly (leave them on the skewers).
Heat a griddle pan on a high heat.
Brush the skewered spears lightly with the olive oil.
When the pan is hot, lay the asparagus flat and leave for 3 minutes to gain deep griddle marks.
Turn over using tongs and griddle for another 3 minutes. If necessary, do the griddling in batches; simply keep the asparagus warm in an oven set at 80ºC/Gas ¼ while you grill the remaining asparagus.
In a large sauté pan on a high heat, add the olive oil and fry the courgette for 30 seconds.
Add the cauliflower, shallot, chilli, paprika and salt, water, lemon juice, parsley and chives, then remove from the heat.
Check the seasoning.
Place a spoonful of the vegetable crumble in the centre of each plate and arrange a stack of the grilled asparagus on top.
Finish with a drizzle of the paprika dressing.