We saw an artichoke in Woolies for 99 cents.....i have no idea how to cook it but remember Umami showing a video of her baby eating it..so figured that it can't be that challenging right...Louisa's response was: "99 cents? Let's buy and try!! It's a vegetable!! Should be healthy!!"
Cos we were away from home and had no other condiments, we decided to eat it plain...and it was surprisely good!!!
method: Cut away the thorny tips of the leaves, wash throughly, wrap in clingwrap and microwave on high for 8 minutes.
What you see in the picture are the leaves....you are supposed to put it into your mouth and using your front teeth, scrap the white edible portion. The leave is not supposed to be eaten. (Had i not researched on the internet, i most probably would have, despite the toughness!!!)
When you come to the middle of the artichoke, the leaves become more tender and those, we ate whole...the sweetest part was the heart..there's some fuzz which you have to scrap off too...
and usually you dip it in butter or mayo or some other creamy dip and can saute/braise the hearts..
I will most probably serve them with a garlic yoghurt dip as an appetiser next time...
The most interesting thing about artichokes is that they leave a lingering sweet plesant taste in your mouth and throat and everything else you eat after that tastes extra sweet!!!
Additional trivia: artichokes were delicacies and thought to have aphrodisiac properties during the 16th century and women were prohibited from eating them...more recently, they are also rumoured to be good for the liver, cleansing the skin and stuff like that...(additional research on Louisa's request...at first bite, the artichoke was quite bland so she was convinced that they must have some medicinal qualities!!!)
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