Purple Artichokes

Purple Artichokes - How to Cook

by River Cottage

Ingredients:
6 medium/large globe artichokes
A squeeze of lemon juice
Sea salt

Method:
Remove the toughest leaves from close to the base of each artichoke and trim the stem to about 3cm long (or, on good-sized ones, remove the stem completely, so the artichoke will sit flat on its base).

Place in a saucepan of lightly salted boiling water with a squeeze of lemon juice, or in a steamer, and cook for 15–30 minutes, depending on size and freshness. Just-cut artichokes will need less cooking. If you grow your own, you’ll find that cooking them within minutes of cutting reduces the cooking time dramatically – to just 7–8 minutes for a small one.

An artichoke is cooked when a leaf from the middle pulls away easily and the heart is tender when pierced with a knife.

To eat, pull off the outer leaves, dipping them in your chosen sauce and scraping away the tender part with your teeth. Work your way down to the tiny, papery leaves near the base, discarding these. Remove the hairy part of the choke with a spoon, then tuck into the delicious heart.