Asian Asparagus

Asian Asparagus is a quick and easy side dish that has lots of flavor with only 5 simple ingredients!  The garlic, ginger and soy sauce combination makes this sautéd asparagus taste great!  

Asian Asparagus stir fry tastes great with a fancy dinner or a casual family meal.

Easy Asian Asparagus Recipe

Fresh crunchy asparagus with a soy sauce glaze that brings the wonderful umami or savory and salty flavors makes my tastebuds happy. Bits of garlic, fresh ginger and slivered almonds top of this delightful and unique Asian asparagus recipe.

We enjoy eating this asparagus with Creamy Pork Chop Casserole, chicken and rice, or Slow Cooker Chicken and Pasta.  The sauce from the asparagus adds a great flavor to the meat and rice for an easy meal.  

Asian asparagus stir fry also goes great with ham.  Whenever you have some plain meat that needs to be dressed up this is the perfect side dish to kick a meal up a notch. This is also one of our go-to holiday recipes for Easter too.

Asparagus is one of my favorite vegetable side dishes because it is so plentiful in the springtime!  We love looking for the first hints of green.  Green gives us hope for the growing season and all that lies ahead!

We never know what life on the farm holds on a yearly basis.  But seeing sprouts of green peaks our hope and our curiosity.  Sometimes the growing season offers just the right amount of rain at the right times.  More often we face challenges like too much rain with lots of mud.  Or lack of rain and drought.  It’s amazing how God makes things grow.

Whatever the farming season and crazy schedules hold having easy side dish recipes like this asparagus are important to have on hand.  We recently adapted this recipe to create Air Fryer Asian Asparagus.  We love both of these versions!

Does Asparagus Need Washed Before Cooking?

There are organisms in dirt where produce is grown that have the potential to bother our digestive systems.  So I always rinse produce under cool running water before cooking or eating.

After meeting produce farmers and touring multiple produce farms I recommend always washing produce before cooking it.  I even wash pre-washed produce as a safety precaution.

How to Sautée Asparagus on the Stove Top

1. Heat skillet on medium high heat on stove top and add olive oil and garlic to the pan.
2. Add asparagus to the skillet and cook asparagus to the desired doneness.
3. Stir well as garlic sautes for a minute or two.
4.  Add ginger and cook for about a minute.
5. Add soy sauce and remove the pan from the heat as soon as the soy sauce boils.
6. Continue stirring and serve immediately.

What’s Needed to Make Sauteed Asparagus

• Asparagus
• Olive Oil
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Soy Sauce
• Toasted Almonds

Step By Step Instructions

Wash the asparagus and allow to air dry. I like to take a thin layer off the bottom of the stalk.

Cut into 1 1/2″ to 2″ bite sized pieces.

Using a non-stick skillet heat olive oil on medium high heat and sauté garlic for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add asparagus and stir fry.

Stir often until crisp tender.

Once some of the cut edges and sides begin to brown add the freshly chopped ginger.

Add the soy sauce last and stir quickly.

Once the ginger becomes tender and is coated in soy sauce remove from the heat and serve.

Enjoy with meat and rice for a more traditional stir fry type meal.

Tips for Making Asparagus in the Skillet

• Cut asparagus into 1 1/2″ to 2″ strips to decrease cooking time
• Wait until asparagus is cooked to add soy sauce and be prepared to remove from heat immediately or it can burn
• We like to keep minced garlic in a jar in the refrigerator to save time
• 1 large clove of garlic is roughly equal to 1 teaspoon of minced garlic in a jar
• Fresh ginger adds an amazing full flavor to the asparagus

My friend Marybeth at My Fearless Kitchen has several great articles on asparagus including How to Choose Asparagus and How to Store Asparagus.

More Easy Side Dish Recipes

• Ranch Glazed Carrots
• Jiffy Corn Pudding
• Easy Low-Carb Loaded Cauliflower Casserole
• Twice Baked Potato Casserole
• Scalloped Corn
• Cheesy Broccoli Casserole 
• Loaded Smashed Potato Casserole

Printable Recipe For Easy Asian Asparagus

Originally shared March 8, 2019 with updates made on September 14, 2023.