Asparagus with Cashews

This is the kind of stir-fry that proves you don’t need a long ingredient list to get serious flavor. Fresh asparagus, ginger, sesame oil, roasted cashews, and soy sauce. Five core ingredients and 15 minutes.

The oil combination matters. Olive oil takes the high heat of the wok, while sesame oil adds that distinctive nutty aroma that makes the whole dish smell like a proper Chinese kitchen. Add the sesame oil with the asparagus, not at the start, or it burns.

Ginger goes in first, one minute of stir-frying before the asparagus. This blooms the ginger into the oil and builds a fragrant base the asparagus cooks into. Then 4 to 5 minutes of constant movement until the stalks are tender but still have that characteristic snap.

The cashews go in last, stirred in just before serving so they stay crisp. Soggy cashews would be a real shame.

Pro Tips

• The wok must be hot before the oil goes in. A drop of water should vaporize instantly. Low-heat stir-frying steams instead of sears.
• Cut asparagus diagonally to increase the surface area that contacts the hot wok, which speeds cooking and improves browning.
• Use roasted, not raw, cashews. The toasted flavor is entirely different and much better here.
• Serve immediately. This dish does not hold well. The asparagus softens and the cashews lose their crunch within minutes.

Variations

• Protein addition: Add thinly sliced chicken or tofu with the asparagus for a complete one-wok meal.
• Heat: A teaspoon of chili garlic sauce stirred in with the soy sauce turns this into a properly spicy version.