Your Sunday Vegetable Recipe

This recipe is one of our favorites from our upcoming book, Great Tastes. If you like what you see – and we’re sure you will! – pre-order it here.

Super Savory Seed-Crusted Asparagus

Serves 4 to 6

Roasted asparagus has always been a go-to for us, but we always sort of wanted to be able to pick them up with our hands and eat them like French fries (this is frowned upon at dinner; we’ve tried it). So, we came up with these Asian-inspired asparagus sticks, which will be a massive hit at your next dinner party. You’re welcome.

Neutral oil, for the pan

½ cup raw pumpkin seeds

¼ cup furikake seasoning (see Note) 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Kosher salt

1 large egg

1 pound medium-thick asparagus (about 20 spears), trimmed

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly coat with oil. Preheat the pans for 5 minutes.
2. In a mini food processor, pulse the pumpkin seeds. (Alternatively, put the seeds in a small resealable bag and use a rolling pin to crush them.) Transfer to a shallow bowl and mix with the furikake, cornstarch, and pinch of cayenne. Taste and season with salt as needed. In a second shallow bowl, beat the egg.
3. Make sure the asparagus is very dry. Dip the top halves of each spear in the egg and then dredge through the seed mixture. Transfer to a plate.
4. Arrange the asparagus on the preheated baking sheets and roast for 4 minutes. Flip over each spear and roast until they are just tender, about 4 minutes longer. Transfer to a serving platter and serve.

NOTE: Furikake seasoning includes sesame seeds, nori seaweed, bonito (dried fish) flakes, salt, sugar, and sometimes MSG. You can find MSG-free versions at natural food markets, like Whole Foods. After you try this mixture, you’ll want to dust it on everything.

*Photographed by Aubrie Pick