Boiled Jumbo Green Asparagus with Kumquat and Pistachio Dressing

To prepare asparagus, bend the stalks head to stem; the stem will break at exactly the place where the fibers stop being edible. Peel—this is a must or you will lose half of the delicacy of the vegetable—with a potato peeler or a parer from the blossom end down, starting just under the close crop of leaves. Assemble the stalks in bundles of small, medium, or large asparagus.

If the asparagus is to be used as a vegetarian first course or as one of the vegetables of a main course, use