Full of flavor and beautifully white: the best asparagus in Brabant comes from Mierlo. Entrepreneurs Lidy van de Ven and Jos Huijbers have the best white gold. The Brabant Asparagus Society has announced this. “An asparagus is more romantic than a cauliflower.”
“A super great feeling. It was quite a relief,” says Lidy, who is still bouncing from the title. She received a certificate and a bronze challenge trophy, which is almost impossible to lift. “We have been participating for more than ten years. We have always just missed out on winning.”
What is the magic of asparagus? “The asparagus has a lot of experience. Couples come especially to buy asparagus together. Nobody goes to buy a cauliflower romantically together,” laughs Van de Ven. “It is also really a seasonal product.”
A ten-member jury assessed the asparagus. They looked very critically at bite, ripeness, taste, smell and especially the aftertaste. 27 growers have been examined by the association. All asparagus is cooked in water with exactly 11 grams of salt per liter. “It’s really about the pure taste of the asparagus,” says Albert Tielemans, culinary advisor Brabants Asparagus Society and chairman of the jury of the competition. “They are beautiful white asparagus and they are full of flavor.”
Customers came especially to Hof van Huijbers on Wednesday afternoon. Are they tasty? “I’m only going to taste them tonight,” says a very critical Ad van Rooij (67). “I’ll keep it a secret for a while. Only then will I know. They are delicious! We eat asparagus two to three times a week.”
Is it really white gold? “The taste is good! You used to be able to earn a lot of money with it, but that has all become more difficult,” Lidy notes. Are customers queuing en masse? “We hope so! We get plenty of nice reactions.”
The provincial battle between Limburg and Brabant also applies to asparagus. “For a long time it was thought that the Limburg asparagus was the tastiest. That is of course not the case,” Lidy laughs. Tielemans also emphasizes: “Brabant should be proud of the asparagus culture.”
Even more winners
Even more asparagus gurus won prizes. Van Hoof Zachtfruit & Asparagus from Olland received the prize for the first asparagus from the cold ground. Thomas Koppens Vleeswaren from Someren for the tastiest Brabant asparagus ham. Hotel restaurant Boer Goossens from Den Dungen won as the best Brabant asparagus restaurant. Bosch Wijnkopers from Boxtel received the prize for the best asparagus wines.
