Chef Gina Makes Artichokes Three Ways Plus A Sauce!

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Late Spring brings one of my favorite, albeit generally underrated vegetables – the artichoke. Often seen on Mediterranean restaurant menus (Italy is the top artichoke consuming country in the world), I don’t know many people who actually cook them at home. Upon investigation, the answers offered were generally they hadn’t thought about them (is there an artichoke marketing board I can speak with?) or they were unsure what to do with them (understandable enough). 

In an attempt to make artichokes as easy as possible – and hopefully raise the profile of my beloved artichoke – I set out to compare different cooking methods to hopefully land on a favorite or at least easiest preparation. I  simply could not declare a clear winner as I love artichokes in any form. So I offer you three recipes – and I provide a couple of pros and cons for each method. 

Personally, I will most likely continue to prepare them the old-school steamed way, but the Instant Pot does cut down significantly on time, and depending on what size pots you have, you may be able to prepare multiple (and certainly in the baked method), which helps when entertaining. When paired with my homemade, garlic aioli they all taste pretty darn good –  and let’s be honest –  isn’t it really about the garlic aioli after all? The artichoke leaves serve almost as little shovels for the sauce and you know I love a sauce. I hope you enjoy these as much I do! 

In general: look for healthy artichokes – indicated by tight, compact leaves that “squeak” a little when squeezed. A little discoloration on the leaves is normal. Feel for a heaviness that indicates it hasn’t dried out. 

METHOD 1: Steaming

The Most Traditional Home Preparation Method

METHOD 2: Baked

METHOD 3: Instant Pot

GARLIC AIOLI