Asparagus is the number one delicacy of spring this year as well. Asparagus has been eaten in Finland for a long time, but it only became extremely popular in the 2000s.
Fresh asparagus in Sauvo, Järvenkylä farm. Wind Lindgren
Asparagus season is underway, and it can be seen in grocery stores as well as in many restaurants. For example, in Helsinki’s classic restaurant Kappel, 100 kilograms of asparagus are now cooked a week, and everything is peeled by hand.
– This is a really popular season, already in the winter our customers start asking when the asparagus weeks start this year. I also see the inquiries as a hopeful expectation of the spring that will begin, says Kappel’s kitchen manager Kimmo Martiskainen in the bulletin.
Asparagus has been eaten in Kappel since the 19th century, but actual asparagus weeks only became common in Kappel and other restaurants in the 1990s and 2000s.
– Asparagus Weeks became a popular phenomenon in the 2000s, when many Helsinki restaurants started putting asparagus in the center in the spring. A few individual restaurants celebrated asparagus weeks already in the 1970s and 1980s, the amanuensis of the Hotel and Restaurant Museum Laika Nevalainen says in the announcement.
Nowadays, asparagus can also be enjoyed domestically. The Finnish asparagus season starts in May, depending on the weather.
Finnish asparagus is at its best when eaten fresh. Asparagus can be roasted as is or chopped raw, for example in a salad. You should feel free to try different varieties, because the differences in taste are great and there is sure to be a favorite for everyone among the varieties. One likes a stronger, the other a milder, pea-like taste.