Sous Vide Asparagus with Lemon Butter Sauce

This Sous Vide Asparagus recipe creates tender yet crisp, and naturally sweet asparagus spears in only 13 minutes.  Making asparagus Sous Vide with a creamy lemon garlic butter sauce makes the best vegetable side dish for any day of the week or holiday.

We love it with Sous Vide Filet Mignon, Sous Vide Tri Tip and Sous Vide Lamb Chops.

Is Asparagus Good In Sous Vide

Not all vegetables are created for sous vide. Asparagus, isn’t one of them. We HIGHLY prefer sous vide over any other cooking style (even though we love pickled asparagus). The bright green asparagus spears are perfectly tender (not soft), perfectly seasoned and don’t take all day to make. All from a quick 13 minute water bath.

How To Make Sous Vide Asparagus

Three steps separate you from a perfectly cooked sous vide asparagus: Pre-heat the water bath, vacuum seal the asparagus, butter and lemon slices (these are the vacuum bags we use), cook for 13 minutes and serve.

Timeline

It takes between 9-13 minutes to sous vide asparagus, not including the time it takes to bring the water to temperature. The total cook time depends on the thickness of the spears. You want a nice and tender spear with a little “crisp” to it when you bite into it. Here’s a great guideline:

• Thin Asparagus Spears – approx. 9 minutes
• Medium Asparagus Spears – approx. 11 minutes
• Thick Asparagus Spears – approx. 13 minutes 

In the past, we categorized asparagus into two categories: thin and thick. The last few Instacart orders have included “uber thick” spears that no longer represent just “thick spears”. When confronted with asparagus the thickness of your thumb vs. ring finger, opt for the longer cook time.

Sous Vide Temperature

180 degrees F is the magic number to produce tender yet slight crunchy sous vide asparagus. Factoring in the water bath prep time, it does take longer than boiling or microwaving, but it’s very hands off and worth the extra prep time.

Flavor Variations

• Throw in some fresh or dried herbs to the bag for an extra bit of herbaceous flavoring. Think basil, thyme, oregano, dill, tarragon or even Italian seasoning.
• Sprinkle parmesan cheese over the poached asparagus for an extra layer of salty goodness.
• Drizzle some balsamic glaze over the top once plated.

Darcey’s Recipe Tips 

Asparagus tends to float, even when using a high end vacuum sealer. I add a heavy bowl on top of the bag to weight it down. You can always add a few heavy spoons, or pie crust weights (you get the idea) to the bag before sealing. You can always invest in some sous vide weights.

Trim the bottom 1″ – 1.5″ off the bottom of the asparagus. This is the tough woody part that is not enjoyable to ingest.

You can use frozen asparagus in place of fresh asparagus. Make sure to shave off a few minutes to avoid mushy spears.

Use leftover asparagus to make Asparagus Soup.

How To Pick Fresh Asparagus

When shopping for asparagus, grab a bunch with the following characteristics for the best final product:

• Rich green, purple or white color, depending on the variety selected.
• Tightly closed tips with a slight purple hue
• Straight, firm and smooth stalks

These tips apply to every asparagus recipe you may make – including this amazing sautéed asparagus recipe and smoked asparagus.

Sous Vide Equipment

• Sous Vide Immersion Circulator – Any brand will work! We use the popular Anova Immersion Circulator.
• Vacuum Bags – Asparagus doesn’t take up a lot of room so you don’t need anything huge. You can always use a Ziploc bag and use the water displacement method if you’re not up for splurging for bags.
• Sous Vide Food Container – Again, asparagus doesn’t take up a ton of room so you can use a large stock pot vs. a dedicated sous vide food container. We use this sous vide food container for our sous vide recipes.

More Sous Vide recipes to check out

• Sous Vide Mashed Potatoes
• Sous Vide Carrots
• Sous Vide Prime Rib
• Sous Vide Ribeye Steak
• Sous Vide Turkey Tenderloin

Wine Parings

Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Unoaked Chardonnay, Gruner Veltliner, Riesling, Gewürztraminer and Champagne