Have you ever seen purple asparagus before? Is it any different in flavor than green? We got all the purple asparagus questions you ever had answered in today's post. At the end get my recipe for air frying purple asparagus with a touch of lemon and grated nutmeg.
📋 What's New In This Post (3/22/25) - Added an air fryer recipe at the end.
Is Purple Asparagus Any Different?
So many of the vegetables that we say are green, can actually be purple as well. Peas. Artichokes. Kale. Cabbage. Brussels Sprouts. And today's topic - asparagus.
Is the purple color just a novelty, or is there anything else unique about it? I spend a couple different asparagus seasons exploring the topic. I bought it from different sources, mainly directly from the farmer. I cooked it some different ways as well. So now I want to share with you my results:
- Purple asparagus taste nearly identical to green.
- It does not hold it's color well when cooked.
- It often has thicker spears.
- It's hard to find when it's not the prime asparagus season.
Jump to:
Does Purple Asparagus Taste Different?
I have heard some people say that purple asparagus is sweeter than green. I have not fond that to be the case as of yet. I had both purple and green side by side, and maybe the purple was a little sweeter, but nothing really noticeable in my or my dinner guests' opinion.
The actual flavor of the purple asparagus is the same as the green. I wasn't able to detect any difference.
Does Purple Asparagus Turn Green When Cooked?
I have grown purple bush beans before and every time I have cooked them, their purple color quickly vanishes. My first thought was that the same thing would happen with the purple asparagus. But this only was part true. The first time I roasted purple asparagus most of the purple color was lost. Since I also roasted some green at the same time I could do a side by side you could tell which spears were purple. Take a look at this photo:
What you will notice when you cut into purple asparagus is that the inferior looks the same as green asparagus. The purple color is only skin deep.
Can You Preserve the Color?
Boiling purple asparagus will turn it a drab, unappealing color. However if you boil the purple asparagus for a minute or less you might able to save some of the color if you quickly throw it into a bowl of ice water. It still be pretty crisp but that might work to keep some of the color.
I haven't experimented much with that. I have blanched snap peas several times and it gives them a vivid green color.
It's not that the asparagus is changing color but the pigment that makes the purple color is sensitive to heat. When the heat hits the color fades leaving only the green, which makes you think it's changing color.
Is Purple Asparagus Thicker?
I don't want to say this is a rule but every time I have had or seen purple asparagus it has been pretty thick. Asparagus spears that are thicker tend to have more flavor but are not tougher at all. But still I always I cut off the last couple inches of the purple asparagus, which is too tough to chew
💡 Tip - Don't just toss out those asparagus ends. They cam be used to make my Asparagus Ends Soup. The soup is made from a homemade stock that uses the asparagus ends, and then potatoes are added with the option of adding some spinach for color.
When in Season?
Most of the year it can be pretty hard to find. I find it here in Michigan during fresh asparagus season, which is in May (learn more about when asparagus is in season). Mainly found at farmer's markets and a few times I have seen it in the grocery store.
My Favorite Cooking Method
When I first started getting into cooking asparagus, I always roasted it in the oven. But since I got an air fryer, I prefer to do it in their instead. You don't need to wait until the oven preheats and it's easier to just toss the asparagus in and pull it out with a pair of tongs when done.
Air Fryer Purple Asparagus
Equipment
- air fryer
Ingredients
- 1 bunch purple asparagus about 1 to 1 ½ pounds
- 1 lemon just the zest
- cooking oil
- freshly grated nutmeg to taste
- kosher salt to taste
Instructions
- Trim off about 1 ½ to 2 inches of the ends of the asparagus. The ends can be saved for making a vegetable stock.
- Drizzle the asparagus with oil before placing into the basket of your air fryer. Season with salt to taste.
- Add the asparagus in a single layer. If you can't fit it all work in batches. I have a dual basket air fryer, so I just hit match cook and use both baskets at once.
- Remove the asparagus with a pair of tongs to a plate or bowl. Add the final seasonings - the lemon zest and the freshly grated nutmeg to taste.
SushiNoel
I have heard that using lemon juice preserves purple color in foods when cooking. I’ve never tried to cook purple cauliflower any other way than adding lemon juice, but the color stays when I do it, not sure if the same applies to other vegetables or not. Of course, cauliflower is a lot more porous, so that might be a factor.
Eric Samuelson
I don't think I have tried putting lemon juice on purple asparagus. Purple cauliflower always stay purple when you cook it. I have done it without any lemon juice quite a bit and it's not one that changes. Asparagus and beans are the ones that I have found turned green. I have cooked purple snow peas and purple snap peas and they have maintained their purple color.