How to Cook Artichokes & Best Artichoke Dipping Sauce
Learn how to cook artichokes in just 30 minutes! Steamed to tender perfection and served with the best artichoke dipping sauce.
Servings:2 servings
Ingredients
- 2 globe artichokes
- 1 lemon, halved
- 1 dried bay leaf
- 3 tbsp half fat creme fraiche, or half sour cream and half mayo
- ½ tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- salt, to taste
- cracked black pepper, to taste
Instructions
To Prepare the Artichokes
- Trim 1 inch off of the top of the artichoke, as well as trimming off 3/4 of the hard stem before peeling off both the tough outer leaves and any small unformed leaved around the base. You'll need a very sharp knife for this!
- Using a sharp pair of kitchen scissors, trim the sharp tips off the remaining visible leaves.
- Rinse the artichoke until the cold tap, gently spreading the exposed leaves as you do so.
- Squeeze half the lemon over the exposed artichokes. Do not dispose of the spent lemon half.
- Squeeze the other half of the lemon, reserving 1 tbsp of the juice.
To Steam the Artichokes
- Prepare a steamer basket over a pot of water to which you have added the spent lemon halved, the bay leaf, and any leftover lemon juice.
- Stem the artichokes with the pan lid on but just tilted to the side to release pressure from the steam for 30-40 minutes; this will depend on the freshness of your artichokes. You'll know they are done when you can easily pull away an outer leaf without tugging.
- Serve with the dipping sauce either whole at the table for people to pull away the tender leaves to dip into the sauce, or separated in the kitchen and piled on a platter (don't forget to include the choke!) next to the bowl of sauce.
To Boil the Artichokes
- Place the artichokes in a large saucepan filled with cold water with the spent lemon halves, any remaining juice and the bay leaves.
- Bring to a boil over medium high heat before reducing to low. Simmer for 35-45 minutes until tender.
- Serve with dipping sauce either whole or at the table for people to pull away the tender leaves to dip into the sauce, or separated in the kitchen and piled on a platter (don't forget to include the choke!) next to the bowl of sauce.
To Make the Dipping Sauce
- While the artichokes are cooking, stir together the creme fraiche, 1 tbsp of reserved lemon juice, olive oil, mustard and garlic powder. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Notes
- This recipe can be scaled depending on how many artichokes you can fit in your steamer basket or in your largest pan.
Nutrition
Calories: 115 kcal, Carbohydrates: 20 g, Protein: 6 g, Fat: 4 g, Saturated Fat: 2 g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2 g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1 g, Sodium: 185 mg, Potassium: 556 mg, Fiber: 9 g, Sugar: 3 g, Vitamin A: 34 IU, Vitamin C: 44 mg, Calcium: 73 mg, Iron: 2 mg