WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS Asparagus, like many vegetables, is a natural candidate for stir-frying because it cooks in a flash. The intense heat beautifully caramelizes it, while the short cooking time ensures that its crisp-tender bite is preserved. Starting with a hot skillet and then stirring the asparagus only occasionally during cooking allowed the asparagus to char before it overcooked, creating a natural sweetness that paired perfectly with the potent Asian-inspired sauce. Thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms complemented the fresh-flavored asparagus and added some heft. To ensure that the asparagus and mushrooms cooked evenly, we added a bit of water, creating a small amount of steam that cooked the vegetables through before evaporating and leaving behind a flavorful, clingy glaze. Look for asparagus spears no thicker than ½ inch. Serve as a side dish, or over rice.

Serves 4

TOTAL TIME: 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon dry sherry
• 2 teaspoons packed brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 pound thin asparagus, trimmed and cut on bias into 2-inch lengths
• 4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced thin
• 2 scallions, green parts only, sliced thin on bias

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a bowl, combine water, soy sauce, sherry, sugar, ginger, and sesame oil.
2. Heat vegetable oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over high heat until smoking. Add asparagus and mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until asparagus is spotty brown, 3 to 4 minutes.
3. Add soy sauce mixture and cook, stirring twice, until asparagus is crisp-tender, 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Transfer to a serving platter, sprinkle with scallion greens, and serve.

VARIATION

• STIR-FRIED ASPARAGUS WITH RED BELL PEPPER:
  Omit soy sauce, sherry, brown sugar, ginger, and sesame oil. Reduce water to 1 tablespoon. Whisk 1 tablespoon orange juice, 1 tablespoon rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon ketchup, and ½ teaspoon salt into water. Substitute 1 stemmed and seeded red bell pepper cut into 2-inch-long matchsticks for shiitakes.