Michela's Asparagus and Eggs: An Illustrated Recipe

Tie the Asparagus

It's difficult to cook a single spear of asparagus -- it will settle into the water, and the tip will be soggy mush long before the stem is done. So the trick is to tie them in bunches, and if you have spears that are of different diameters, divide them into a couple of bunches of similar diameter if need be.

In preparing the bunches, gently stand the spears on their heads so that the tips are all at the same height. Next, tie the spears into a bunch using two loops of string, one under the tips and one towards the ends of the spears. Finally, trim the ends so the spears are all of the same length.