FOR many Chinese, eating seasonal vegetables in spring is essential for health and vitality since the yang ("hot") energy in the universe rises in spring. Traditional Chinese medicine holds that plants warmed by the sun and watered by spring rain absorb the essence of both earth and heaven and are filled with energy.

From now until the end of May is the peak season for eating bamboo shoots, the new bamboo stems or culms emerging from the ground.

Although Westerners don't pursue the same seasonal yin-yang diet therapy, eating white asparagus in spring is a strong tradition.

The peak season is usually from late April to the beginning of June.

This week, we introduce how Western and Eastern hotel chefs present white asparagus, which grows underground, green asparagus growing above ground and bamboo shoots.

White asparagus

Serving white asparagus only in spring is the result of its growing environment and particular climatic requirements, says Markus Tauwald, executive sous chef of the Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel Shanghai.

According to him, the ideal climate for white asparagus, a delicacy sometimes called edible ivory, is the continental Mediterranean climate in spring, with sharp temperature differences between day and night; these diurnal differences give the vegetable its white color with purplish tones and a pleasant sweetness.

That explains why many famous white asparagus production areas are located around the Mediterranean and on the western coasts of Europe as well as in Germany and the Netherlands.

However, the cost of importing white asparagus from Europe is very high, at least five times more expensive than that of local asparagus, and freshness cannot be ensured. Many hotels and restaurants source their produce locally and asparagus is no exception.

In early May Tauwald will launch a set menu featuring white asparagus.

"Many of the dishes are based on traditional Mediterranean recipes," he says. He strongly recommends white asparagus with Angus beef tenderloin, new potatoes and Hollandaise sauce (388 yuan/US$61.78).

Also recommended are the marinated white asparagus salad with truffles and chives (98 yuan) and cream of white asparagus soup (60 yuan).

Tauwald chooses asparagus stalks around 25cm long and 2cm thick. "Only in this size does the vegetable have a tender and soft texture as well as a nice sweetness," he says.

Green asparagus

White asparagus, known for its high sweetness and soft texture, is widely used in Western cuisine, though Americans prefer green asparagus, which is also an early spring vegetable growing on the surface. The color is green because it's exposed to sunlight.

Green asparagus is especially popular in Asia because of its crisp texture and delicate flavor. It's widely used in Cantonese cuisine, known for its light flavor.

Green asparagus is typically scalded or made into soup. Chinese chefs have recently drawn asparagus inspiration from Western starters and Japanese cuisine.

Kevin Ji, Chinese executive chef of Renaissance Shanghai Pudong Hotel, recently launched chilled green asparagus with soy sauce and wasabi (78 yuan).

Lengths of green asparagus spears, each around 5cm long, are "planted" in crushed ice as if they are emerging in spring.

Chilled green asparagus is crispy and sweet and the wasabi sauce adds layers of flavor while not overpowering the natural sweetness of asparagus.

Bamboo shoots

Bamboo shoots are one of the most popular seasonal ingredients in Shanghai and neighboring Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.

They grow in less-polluted mountainous areas, hence, it has a natural, refreshing fragrance, says chef Ji. "During spring, especially after it is watered by the spring rain, its fragrance is more intense and it contains more water so it's tender and crispy."

Most of the high-quality bamboo shoots are plump, with a light yellow outer skin and short bamboo joints, coming from Anji County and Tianmu Mountain in Zhejiang Province, says Chen Daxing, executive chef of Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel.

Bamboo shoots are a favorite ingredient for both chefs who say they are versatile, giving them plenty of space for variation and creation.

"It doesn't have much flavor. However, in contact with other ingredients, it gives off a special aroma and absorbs flavors from other ingredients," says chef Ji.

For dishes featuring bamboo shoots, quality ingredients give tender textures while the flavor comes from the chef's culinary skills and recipe creation, he says.

Different parts of the bamboo shoots have different uses.

The head, also called the tip, is the most tender and often used for making cold dishes.

The middle part is often fried or braised while the bottom part with a hard texture is usually used in soup.

The two chefs agree that meat with bamboo shoots is an ideal pairing.

"When those two ingredients meet, the bamboo shoots absorb the fatty taste of the meat while the meat becomes more delicate; the scent has a strong meaty fragrance," Ji explains.

Chef Ji has launched a new soup, a thick broth with bamboo shoots and mushrooms (78 yuan/US$12.42). The broth made of chickens' feet and pigs feet has the fatty aroma of pork and delicate flavor of chicken.

The bamboo shoots fully absorb the flavor from the broth, tasting rich, juicy and crispy.

Three different kinds of mushrooms with different textures add more flavors.

Chef Chen has launched bamboo shoots steamed with air-dried pork and cuttlefish roe (88 yuan). Layers of bamboo shoots, thinly sliced egg and cuttlefish eggs are arranged in bottom-up order, so each bite has complex textures. The dish is presented in the shape of bamboo, which has a symbolic meaning of blooming and rising steadily.

Chef Chen recommends serving Chinese rice wine with the dish so the slight bitterness of the bamboo shoots can be covered.

Chef Ji also combines the two spring ingredients, creating green asparagus and bamboo shoots with crab meat (108 yuan), which has a fusion-like flavor.

A bamboo shoot is hollowed out and filled with green asparagus. Before serving, the dish is topped with a mixture of crab meat and carrots.

It has a complex texture, crispy outside and tender inside. The crab and all the vegetables have natural sweetness.

Where to order:

Dishes from Kevin Ji

Wan Li Restaurant

Renaissance Shanghai Pudong Hotel

Tel: 3871-4888

Address: 100 Changliu Rd, Pudong

Dishes from Chen Daxin and Markus Tauwald

Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel Shanghai

? Shang-High Cuisine

Tel: 3858-0768

? Grill Room

Tel: 3858-0728

Address: 1108 Meihua Rd, Pudong

Add 15% service to all charges.