Artichokes are a sharable side dish that are fun to peel apart and dip in your favorite sauce. There are a few ways to cook your artichokes depending on your time and how you prefer them. Learn about the anatomy of the artichoke and how each component comes together and is cooked. Preparing an artichoke is simple and doesn’t take long. Enjoy these with your next meal!
Tips for Picking the Best Artichoke
Artichokes are mostly in season in the spring and early summer so you have a better chance of finding a good-quality one then. However, they can be found at most grocery stores year-round. Follow these simple tips to help pick the best artichoke for cooking!
Size – When picking out an artichoke, you want to find one that seems heavy for its size. the heavier the artichoke the more moist and fresh it is. The size of the artichokes is important and will give you more meat on the artichoke as well. Color – Find the vibrant, green artichokes at your local grocery store. These are the ones with the most flavor and freshes. Petals – Look for one where the petals are tight and close together. Leaf tips – The leaves need to be tight and compact. This will help hold in the freshness. If the leaves are brown or dry, it is an older artichoke that will not be as good. Stem – Pick a firm stem that is not mushy or soft. Squeezing – Squeeze the artichoke a bit to make sure it is not overripe or soft and spongy. Thorns – Try to find an artichoke with not a lot of thorns. The thorns only mean it is harder to hold onto the artichoke with your hands.
Parts of an Artichoke
Though many believe an artichoke to be a vegetable, it is the bud of a large thistle before it blooms. If you cut an artichoke in half you can find the thistle inside. The image below shows all the different parts of the artichoke.
Outer petals – The hard, outermost layer of the artichoke. These petals are very tough and are edible, however, most people discard the tough outer leaves after biting off the meaty part. Inner petals – The inner petals are not quite as tough as the outer layer. These tender inner leaves can be cut up with the artichoke heart and eaten or used in recipes. The “choke” – The purple, hairy-looking center is the thistle or the “choke”. It is spiny and inedible. I am guessing it is called the “choke” because that is what you will do if you try to eat it. It is easiest to remove after the artichoke has been fully cooked, however, some like to remove it before cooking. Either way works just fine. The “heart” – This is the meatiest, most tender part of the whole artichoke. You can often buy just the artichoke hearts at most stores. Most people prefer to do this because it is easy, but fresh, tender artichoke hearts just can’t be beaten! Stem – The stem of the artichoke is edible. It is tender but stringy, kind of like celery.
How To Prepare an Artichoke for Cooking
Cooking an artichoke is a simple task and tastes amazing when softened! Rinsing the artichoke just like any other veggie and then trimming it properly is the best success when cooking artichoke.
Methods of Steam Artichokes
Steaming artichokes is one of my favorite methods of cooking them. It is a simple process that still has flavor and takes less than an hour. You will love the tender, soft pedals that really make it easy to enjoy with a hint of lemon flavor.
How to Cook Artichokes in a Pressure Cooker
To cook artichokes in an Instant Pot, place about 2 cups of water in the Instant Pot then add the lemons. Place the artichokes in the Instant Pot cut-sides-down (stem UP). Cook on high pressure for 15 to 20 minutes depending on the size of your artichokes. If you remove the artichokes and find they aren’t tender enough, just add them back to the pot and pressure cook for another 3 to 5 minutes.
How to Cook Artichokes on a Grill
Want to take those artichokes to the next level? After steaming them, throw them on the grill! We have an incredible grilled artichoke recipe with detailed instructions on how to grill them here: Grilled Artichokes. Trust me, it’s worth the few extra minutes to get that deep charred flavor.
How to Eat an Artichoke
The first time I ate an artichoke, I peeled off one of the outer petals and popped the whole thing in my mouth. I learned quickly that this was the wrong way to eat an artichoke. When you are working on the outer layers of the artichoke, you will want to peel off a petal and scrape the meaty part (that was closest to the heart) off with your teeth. I like to use my bottom teeth to scrape it clean but I have seen people use their top teeth too. Once you get to the heart, you can just dive in with a fork and enjoy the whole thing.
Homemade Artichoke Dipping Sauce
You can enjoy an artichoke plain, but it is SO MUCH better when you dip each bite into a dipping sauce. Try some of my favorite things to dip artichokes in!
Mayonnaise – Gives this artichoke dipping sauce a creamy and flavorful base. Lemon aioli – This is basically just mayonnaise with lemon. It has so much flavor and really adds to the dipping sauce. Sriracha mayo – It gives a little spicy flavor with a creamy texture. Butter sauce – Melted butter, garlic butter, or lemon butter all have that creamy buttery rich taste. Lemon – Infused olive oil or lemon-infused balsamic will have your tastebuds singing! You can find these at Italian markets. So good! Lemon juice – A simple and basic way to enhance the flavors of artichokes. It is real and tart with the savory flavors.
How to Cook Artichokes
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