The Skewer Tip You Need To Effortlessly Grill Asparagus

Asparagus is a great side dish for any meal because of its crunchy goodness and delicious flavor. If you are looking for a way to elevate your asparagus, take a page out of the celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis' book and toss it on the grill. Although De Laurentiis cooks her asparagus on a grill pan, you can also easily cook asparagus on a regular outdoor grill without having to worry about those pesky little veggies falling through the slots and into the fire. All you need is one simple hack –- skewers. Either metal or wooden skewers will do the trick while also making asparagus much easier to flip and cook evenly on the grill.

This hack allows you to ditch the aluminum foil and cook asparagus directly on the grill to get all that flavorful caramelization and char –- which, of course, is the point of grilling asparagus in the first place!

The first step in grilling asparagus with skewers is to choose the type of skewers. Both metal and wooden ones will do the trick. However, for the wooden ones, make sure to soak them in water overnight so they don't catch on fire while on the grill. 

Once, you have your skewers ready, prep the asparagus. As with any asparagus recipe, first cut off the tough ends, then season. For grilled asparagus, it is best to keep the seasonings simple. We recommend coating the veggies lightly in olive oil, salt, and pepper then letting the grill create the rest of the flavor.

After seasoning, it's time to start skewering. Grab one piece of asparagus at a time and stab it with the skewer through the center. Thread the veggies in perpendicular fashion, so you can fit more asparagus on each skewer. When the skewer is full, toss it onto the grill and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, flipping every few minutes until the veggies are nice and tender.

When it comes to grilling asparagus, the main two choices to help prevent the veggies from falling into the flames (besides purchasing a grill basket) are skewers or wrapping in aluminum foil. While skewers have the upper hand when it comes to getting grilled flavor on your veggies, there are some situations where you may want to reach for the foil instead. 

If you want your asparagus to be cooked with more ingredients, wrap the veggies in foil with additions like lemon juice, garlic, and butter. While you will lose the caramelization that you would have gotten by using skewers, aluminum foil allows you to play around more with ingredients — especially highly flammable ones like butter.

However, there are a few reasons why you may want to rethink using aluminum foil. It's not great for the environment, as it's not easily recyclable or reusable. A more environmentally-friendly method is to bake the asparagus in the oven. However, if you are firing up the grill anyway, cooking your veggies in foil while you grill other foods may be the most time-saving and energy-efficient way to do it. It all depends on the situation!