THE BRITISH
ASPARAGUS

Our new-season Herefordshire-grown asparagus is fresh and full of flavour, says food, wine & flowers editor Becky Sunshine

Springtime brings with it exciting new vegetables and, for me, there’s nothing more delicious than sweet asparagus. We’re particularly good at producing it in the UK, but the season has always been quite short. Not any more. M&S has been working with the Chinn family at Cobrey Farms in Herefordshire’s Wye Valley, and with intricate tunnels, drip irrigation and refined growing techniques – similar to those used by British strawberry growers – they’ve extended production from late April until mid-June, and then again from September to October. The best bit? Their asparagus arrives at M&S food halls just one day after being harvested. I’ll be eating mine tossed in olive oil, lightly seasoned with sea salt and black pepper, then roasted in the oven for no more than five to 10 minutes. Perfect.
Store finder Try our spring asparagus pasta recipe