Aspargus Tempura

In one of those "oops! I forgot the oven was on at 400 degrees F for an hour with something in it" moments, the outcome was suprisingly delicious. On Sunday night in NYC, my girlfriend and I were cooking a pasta dish and decided to serve roasted asparagus as a sort of side dish appetizer plate. I always like something on a beautiful dish in the middle of the table to pick up with my fingers as respite or compliment from the flavours of my main meal. I thought handling thick in season asparagus crisply done would be perfect. Only when we were tasting the pasta to check for its al dente doneness did I feel the heat from the oven and remember that my poor asparagus were roasting alive in 400 degree heat basked only in olive oil and coarse sea salt and no bowler hat to protect from the sun.

When I took the pan out of the oven, these poor asparagus looked slightly charred and barely green. They held their form all right but barely. I emptied them out onto a square plate and tasted one with the garbage bin open ready to toss them. To my surprise and delight they tasted like asparagus tempura - crisp, salty, slightly battered, a soft interior that felt airy and a satisfying oily sweet vegetable aftertaste.