Artichokes are delicious, that's no big secret. They're not entirely uncommon in many Italian and French dishes either. Yet, how often have you run across this vegetable in the store, with its somewhat pinecone-esque appearance, and thought to yourself, "Wait, how do I actually eat this?" Well, my friends, today, I'm going to show you how!
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| HOW DO I ARTICHOKE |
Step one!
...Yeah, this one's going to take a bit of preparation. Don't worry though, it'll be worth it in the end!
First start by taking off the tips of the leaves, and then just slice off the top couple cm of the cone.
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| Snip, snip. |
Dunk the whole thing, face-down, into the steaming device of your choosing for 30-40 minutes.
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| Gettin' steamy up in here. |
Step 2: the dipping sauce
While the artichoke is cooking, you've got ample time to put together a dipping sauce for it. This dip will also work great for other bitter vegetables as well, like asparagus!
You will need:
- 1tsp butter
- mayo (I used Japanese mayo for this; though pretty much any kind OTHER THAN MIRACLE WHIP UGH should work)
- 1tbsp sour cream
- seasonings: garlic powder, onion powder, dill, and tarragon
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| The butter sits alone... |
Melt the butter, then mix all the other ingredients in.
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| It'll only look gross for a second. |
Ta-daaa! Now, while the artichoke is cooking, let this sit in the fridge for a bit so all the flavors can get all happy together.
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| Also good for other vegetables, sandwich spread, you name it. |
Step 3: Enjoy!
After 30-40 minutes, pull your artichoke from the steamer, and just start pulling the leaves off. The outermost leaves won't have much "meat" to them, but they'll get better and better as you get toward the middle layers.
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| Don't worry that the outermost leaves don't have much to them; they get better as you go. |
To eat: Just dip the soft end of the leaf into that dip you made earlier, then take the leaf between your teeth, soft-side down, scraping off the soft pulp with your bottom-front teeth. Then bite off the soft end of the leaf, and enjoy this savory delight!
Once you get down to the center, you'll notice the leaves get smaller and smaller, and have progressively less stuff to eat off of them. Pull off these tiny things, and you'll come to a structure that looks kind of like this:
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| GAAAH IT IS AN ALIEN!!! |
Don't fret though, the best part is inside of here! Just cut off the "fur," then take off the "bark" from around the spot where the artichoke meets the stem, and you're left with the most tender, succulent, delicious part of the entire plant: the "heart." I didn't take a picture of that part... couldn't stop myself from eating it before getting the camera ready.
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