Lemony Asparagus Salad With Shaved Cheese and Nuts
- Total Time
- 20 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- ¾cup pistachios or other nuts
- 1pound asparagus, woody ends trimmed
- ½cup plus 3 tablespoons soft herbs, such as dill, parsley and tarragon, or a combination
- 3tablespoons minced shallots, red onion or scallion
- 1½tablespoons fresh lemon juice (or cider vinegar)
- Large pinch of kosher salt, plus more as needed
- ¼teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ⅓cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
- ¾cup coarsely grated cheese (1½ ounces), preferably a young sheep’s milk, such as pecorino or Manchego, but any firm cheese works, plus more for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
417 calories; 35 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 20 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 14 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 5 grams sugars; 16 grams protein; 400 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Heat oven to 350 degrees. On a rimmed baking sheet, spread pistachios in an even layer and toast for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool enough to handle, then roughly chop.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, fill a large skillet with 1-inch water. Place steam basket on top, cover and bring to a simmer. Steam asparagus until just tender, about 5 minutes. Drain.
- Step 3
Finely chop 3 tablespoons mixed soft herbs. In a medium bowl, combine shallot, lemon juice, a pinch of salt and the pepper, and let sit for 2 minutes. Whisk in oil, then stir in pistachios, cheese and chopped herbs.
- Step 4
To serve, drizzle asparagus with oil and salt to taste. Dollop with dressing, tear remaining ½ cup herbs on top, and sprinkle generously with more cheese. Taste and adjust salt as needed.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Annie
Beautiful with what I needed to use up: red onion, pine nuts, and pecorino. Added lemon zest to the salsa, why not. Taking someone’s advice from a recipe elsewhere on this site, I roasted the asparagus (~10 mins) on a cooling rack sitting on a baking sheet, spears facing in. 350 degrees. Yum.
Lyndsey
As the article suggested, you can easily swap out ingredients. Here’s what I had lying around: pecorino, toasted walnuts, red onion. For the herbs: dill, parsley, cilantro. Put it over steamed broccoli - delicious. The salsa stands on its own. Would be delicious on a toasted baguette or cracker too!
AdrianB
A very interesting variation on my grandmother’s recipe. She used parmigiana and anchovy with asparagus. I am aware that a lot of people in the US have not acquired a taste for anchovy, but I have served this to many of my US friends, and they have enjoyed it. You don’t need a lot of anchovy, and you chop it up into tiny pieces. The recipe is very simple, steamed asparagus, good Virgin olive oil, grated parmigiana and the cut up anchovies....truly delicious.
John A
Cut the amount of pistachios and scallions by at least half. Otherwise each has a tendency to overwhelm.
Rondi
Coarsely chopping the pistachios sounded like giving my puppy a snack, when they ricocheted off my knife. Instead I put the cooled nuts into a ziploc bag and bashed them with my mallet a few times. The salad was amazing and my puppy loved the elk antler I gave her.
LDChi
We’ve made this into a large salad many times with a head of romaine after chopping the asparagus. Also, roasting the asparagus in a hot oven for a few minutes is simple—especially if you already have the oven on to toast the nuts. Always soak the minced shallots in the lemon juice for 15 minutes (while the asparagus is in the oven) before mixing with the other dressing ingredients to cut the sharpness of the shallot. Don’t skimp on the fresh herbs or the cheese. A family favorite!
A.S
Delicious, def will make again and again
jenmo
Do your kids love asparagus, but you don’t? That was me, and now this dish is on the weekly faves rotation. So good! Kids can add the toppings they like, and you get it all. Secret tip - Shaving the bottom half of your asparagus before roasting makes it more delicate and juicy. I like to roast the asparagus early in the dinner prep, especially if something else needs to go in the oven. The room temp asparagus is great for this ‘salad.’ This is now my favorite vegetable side.
Betsy
I can’t tell from the recipe or the commentary if folks make this to serve room temp? Would like to prepare in advance. Seems like it would work. Yes?
Theresa
I made this salad to bring to a dinner party yesterday . Followed the recipe pretty closely except added the zest of the lemon I used for the dressing. The herbs I used were parsley, tarragon and dill and i had some spring onions so I used those instead of shallots. The left overs were still delicious the next day. I think fresh young asparagus are key as well as following the short steaming time recommended. The recipe doesn’t call for it but I put the steamed asparagus in an ice bath.
Frank
Looks like a lot of details, but most of it is simple prep. We used Parm and really like that. Adds a lot of flavor and interest to contrast with the Asparagus.
C
Love this recipe! We used mint, almonds and pecorino. The leftover dress is amazing for dipping bread into.
monica
I don’t think you need quite as much pistachio or cheese. Otherwise it overwhelms.
Terri
It's really versatile and good! I used pecans, scallions, apple cider vinegar, parmesan shreds, parsley, and cilantro. I roasted the asparagus 8 minutes because the oven was hot from roasting the nuts. Delicious.
monica
Maybe cut the amount of pistachio and scallions a bit. Otherwise too much. Monica
MA Smith
This recipe is delicious and can be used in lots of different ways. Asparagus is just the beginning!
E.O.
I prepared this dish last night as a side dish just as it was written. It was a hit. Will prepare this again. Looked great tasted even better. 5 stars
Deb
Amazing! Used pine nuts as the nut. Made for a special veg side for a holiday dinner.
Gabriella
This was incredible. I used cashews. Really a flexible recipe. Lemon juice, shallot and olive oil are basically your vinaigrette and add whatever herbs, nuts and cheese you have on hand.
Amanda G
Only used 1 tbs red onion. Did not have pistachios so substituted mixed nuts. Added more lemon juice. Very tasty.
LDChi
We’ve made this into a large salad many times with a head of romaine after chopping the asparagus. Also, roasting the asparagus in a hot oven for a few minutes is simple—especially if you already have the oven on to toast the nuts. Always soak the minced shallots in the lemon juice for 15 minutes (while the asparagus is in the oven) before mixing with the other dressing ingredients to cut the sharpness of the shallot. Don’t skimp on the fresh herbs or the cheese. A family favorite!
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