Exotic Spring Possibilities to Wake your Taste Buds

If you'd like to try something, shall I say, far out, you could prepare your local fiddleheads or asparagus Himalayan style.  Here's a recipe from Sikkim in which you can use either spring green.


Sikkim Spring Vegetables
serves 4-6

1 pound fiddleheads or asparagus                        

1/4 lb farmer’s or feta cheese  

1 medium red onion

2 medium tomatoes

2 teaspoon garlic/ginger paste (2 cloves garlic minced and 1 inch ginger peeled and grated)

2 tablespoons corn or canola or safflower oil

salt to taste

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Wash and clean the Fiddleheads (called ningro in those mountains ) thoroughly. Or rinse the asparagus. Cut each fiddlehead in half or remove the tough ends of each asparagus stalk, then cut each into 2 inch pieces.

Fill a medium sized saucepan about 1/3 full of boiling water, add the cut vegetable and add a pinch of salt. Cook two minutes. Drain immediately but do not dry. (A little bit wet will come in handy.)

Chop the onion. Chop the tomatoes.

Heat the oil in a wok or medium sauté pan and over medium heat sauté the chopped onion until it’s soft. Add the chopped tomatoes and ginger paste and stir-fry for about two minutes. Add the cheese and fiddleheads or asparagus. Add a pinch of salt and a pinch of black pepper. Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes.  (Mrs. Ongmo says during this time you may need to add a tablespoon or two of water, so the dish doesn’t get too dry.) The cheese will melt into the juices forming a sauce. Remove from heat. Adjust for salt and pepper seasoning.  Serve hot as a side dish.

Here's a version with potatoes added:

HIMALAYAN STYLE FIDDLEHEADS WITH Potatoes, for 4-6

1 sm. red onion, peeled, finely chopped

4 tbsp. unsalted butter

½ lb. fiddleheads, cleaned

3 new potatoes, cleaned and sliced into thin disks

1 cup water

1 med. fresh green chili (about ½ oz.), seeded and sliced in thin strips

¼ tsp ground coriander

8 oz fresh soft sheep cheese, farmers’ or feta cheese or soft ricotta, crumbled

1/8 tsp. salt

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Melt butter in a large saucepan. Add onion and sauté until translucent and soft. Add fiddleheads, potatoes and water. Simmer over low heat about 10 minutes until vegetables are tender.  Add the chili, coriander, cheese and salt, stirring to blend. Continue to simmer until cheese melts into a smooth sauce, about 5 minutes. Add freshly ground black pepper to your taste and serve hot. 

Bhutanese style Asparagus

This means adding chilies to the mix.

1 sm red onion, peeled          

4 tbsp unsalted butter

½ lb asparagus, lower ends trimmed off

¾ cup water

1 med fresh green chili, stemmed and seeded

1 cup (6 oz) farmers’ or feta cheese, crumbled

1/8 tsp. salt

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Quarter the onion and chop finely. Slice the chili into thin julienne strips. Cut the asparagus into 2 inch pieces.

Melt butter in a large saucepan. Add the onion and sauté until translucent and soft. Add asparagus

and water. Simmer over low heat until asparagus is tender, about 10 minutes

Add the chili, cheese and salt. Stir to blend. Continue to cook about five minutes until the cheese melts into a smooth sauce. Add black pepper to your taste and serve hot.  

Here are two Bhutanese monks making this for me a few years ago: