The History of Asparagus

Green asparagus has been around for thousands of years and even appears in ancient Egyptian art dating back to 3,000 B.C. The ancient Greeks and Romans used asparagus for both medicinal and culinary purposes; a recipe for preparing green asparagus even appears in one of the oldest surviving cookbooks, Apicius’ De re Coquinaria, Book III. White asparagus, which boasts a subtle sweetness and nuttiness in place of green asparagus’ grassy bitterness, was not introduced until the 17th century. First cultivated in France, white asparagus was the result of horticulturists learning how to shade emerging asparagus spears with mounded soil, which stopped the photosynthesis process responsible for the green pigment and yielded a more tender crop. The technique quickly spread to Germany and other parts of Europe. Today, white asparagus is considered a delicacy and is grown widely in Europe and South America, while green asparagus is seen as a staple vegetable in many cuisines from around the world.