This garlic roasted asparagus recipe is a simple, fast veggie side dish. The asparagus is perfectly tender with perfectly crispy tips. Serve alone, or try our 5-minute garlic herb sauce to drizzle over the top!
We’re sharing this asparagus recipe in the spirit of simplicity. We all need more quick and delicious side dishes in our lives, and this garlic asparagus hits both notes. Roasted asparagus takes 10 to 20 minutes to make (depending on how thick the stems are), and the sauce only requires 5 minutes of your time and can even be made days in advance.
We’ve shared many easy veggie side dishes lately, including this quick sautéed bok choy, garlic butter sautéed zucchini, and this easy roasted cabbage.
Key Ingredients
- Asparagus: When you’re picking asparagus, go for spears that are bright green, with tips tightly closed and compact. If you spot a little purple on the tips, that’s a bonus! Skip any bunches that look dull or yellow, or have tips that are starting to open up. They should also feel firm and snap easily when bent. Limp or bendy asparagus is past its prime.
- Garlic: I usually wait to add garlic to roasted veggies so it doesn’t burn, but asparagus cooks so quickly that you can add fresh, minced garlic at the beginning and get all that delicious garlicky flavor without worry of burning.
- Garlic Herb Sauce (optional): For more garlic flavor, try our favorite garlic herb sauce for dipping! It’s a riff on our tahini sauce, with tahini, lemon, parsley, dill, and chives all mixed together. It’s so good with roasted asparagus. Or, if you’re feeling fancy, our homemade hollandaise is another classic choice for asparagus.
Find the full recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Garlic Roasted Asparagus
Tip 1: Check the thickness of the stems. If you have skinny stems, you do not need to peel them! Simply trim the ends, and you are ready to season and roast. If you have thicker asparagus, the stems may be a bit more woody (meaning they won’t become as tender in the oven).
For thicker, more woody asparagus, grab a vegetable peeler and peel away the outer layer of the stems. Then, trim them about an inch from the bottom. You can also bend the stems and see where they snap. The asparagus should naturally break where the woody part begins.
Tip 2: Season them. Place the prepped asparagus on a baking sheet and scatter over minced garlic, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Use your hands to toss them well, then spread them into one layer so they roast evenly.
Tip 3: Use a hot oven. I prefer a hot oven when roasting asparagus. Preheat your oven to 400°F, which means the asparagus should only take 15 to 25 minutes. You can tell when they are done when the tips are a little crispy and the stems are tender. A simple check is to pierce a stem with a fork. If it slides in easily, the asparagus is done.
Tip 4: Serve with garlic herb sauce. I highly recommend making a batch of our garlic herb sauce (recipe below). It’s simple and only requires stirring ingredients together. It’s plant-based, vegan, and delicious. It also lasts in the fridge for five days, so we highly recommend making a batch!
Serving Suggestions
I’ve served this as an appetizer (it’s perfect with the sauce) and as a side. When it comes to mains to go next to it, think fresh, spring-forward recipes like our roast chicken, baked pork chops, poached salmon, simple roast pork tenderloin, garlic basil chicken breasts, and lemon chicken thighs.
More Asparagus Recipes
Garlic Roasted Asparagus
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Garlic asparagus is one of my favorite easy side dishes. The asparagus comes out perfectly tender with just the right amount of crispy tips. I love serving it with our 5-minute garlic tahini herb sauce for an extra kick of garlicky, fresh flavor. Plus, it’s vegetarian and always a hit at our table.
You Will Need
Garlic Asparagus2 pounds asparagus (907 g)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 medium cloves)
Salt and fresh ground black pepper
4 thin lemon slices, halved, optional
Garlic Herb Tahini Sauce⅓ cup well stirred tahini, try homemade tahini (80 ml)
1 garlic clove minced very finely into a paste or use a microplane, see note
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, from half a lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
Pinch fine sea salt
3 to 6 tablespoons lukewarm water
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
Directions
- Roast Asparagus
1Heat oven to 400°F (204°C) and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2Break off or slice the tough ends of the asparagus. If the asparagus is thick, peel them (see tips below).
3Place the asparagus on the baking sheet and toss with the olive oil, minced garlic, a generous pinch of salt, and a generous pinch of black pepper.
4Spread the asparagus out in one layer. Nestle the lemon slices around the asparagus. Roast until tender, 10 to 20 minutes, depending on how thick they are. If you can pierce them with a fork, they are done.
5Serve alone or alongside the garlic herb tahini sauce, which can be drizzled over the roasted asparagus or used as a dipping sauce.
- Garlic Herb Tahini Sauce
1Garlic herb tahini sauce can be made up to 5 days in advance. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
2Whisk the tahini, garlic paste, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt in a bowl until combined. The mixture will thicken; don’t worry about this. Add the water, a tablespoon at a time, whisking well after each addition until desired consistency. For a dip, look for the consistency of thin peanut butter. For a sauce to drizzle over the asparagus, add enough water until the consistency of runny yogurt.
3Stir in the herbs. Taste for seasoning and adjust with additional salt or lemon juice.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Thick asparagus stalks: We peel the outer layer, which can be a little stringy. A vegetable peeler makes quick work of this. If you have thin stalks, skip this step.
- About the sauce: This sauce is an extra herby version of our tahini sauce (click for a video showing how to make it). We make the sauce with homemade tahini. You can buy your tahini, but if you have sesame seeds, you won’t believe how simple it is!
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates.
I tried this recipe without any substitutions. I used a nutribullet to blend the garlic herb tahini sauce. This recipe was delicious!
Simple, elegant, healthy. What more could you want from a side dish? For a prettier presentation, you can trim the thorns from the asparagus with a vegetable peeler. Parve Non-gebrokts