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Grilled
First Things First
Buy one or two artichokes from your local grocery store or farmers market. There are two types of artichokes; the round globe artichoke and a longer, tapered artichoke. I used the tapered ones for this post.
An artichoke is part of the thistle family and is actually the bud of the plant. Finding the right artichoke is simple, it should feel heavy and be firm. The leaves need to be hugging the bulb. Loose leaves mean the artichoke heart is old and not as fresh as it needs to be.
Get the Water Going
Start out by heating water in a 6-8 quart pan. The water is ready when it starts boiling. I tend to add salt, and Old Bay seasoning to my water to season the artichoke.
Preparing the Artichoke
Rinse the artichoke with water. Artichokes have spikes on the tip of each leaf, so be careful not to get one stuck in your finger. It is because of this that I use scissors to trim the tips off the leaves before I do anything else.
Once you have trimmed the tips off the leaves, cut the artichoke in half lengthwise. Lay the artichoke halves with the center facing down and trim off the very top of the artichoke.
Next, trim off the bottom of the stem and use a vegetable peeler to peel off the outer skin of the stem. At this point, cut the halves in half – and there will be four quarters.
Remove the Choke
This part is a little tricky because the choke breaks into a bunch of fuzzy pieces. The choke is the fuzzy purple part and is not edible. I take a paring knife and carefully cut along the edge of the heart, cutting out the fuzzy part and the small leaves.
Some of these small leaves have sharp spikes too, so watch out. Sometimes, I cut the tips off with a pair of scissors. These small leaves are actually edible. The bigger leaves have a meatiness that you scrape off with your teeth.
Funny Story
Recently, we were in Mexico and ordered the grilled artichoke at a restaurant. They served the artichoke with the choke still intact. I mentioned to the waiter that the choke should be removed.
His response surprised me. He said that people would feel like they were being short-changed or cheated if they took the choke out. But, since the choke is not edible, it was very difficult to eat around the choke.
Start the Grill and Get the Sauces Made
The artichokes need to boil for about 20 minutes. So, while the artichokes are boiling, start the grill and make the sauces. These sauces can be melted butter or mayonnaise. However, I like to make a few different ones.
Mixing horseradish with the mayonnaise makes a sauce that adds a bit of a punch! Or, take some Italian dressing and add in balsamic vinegar. Sometimes I will mix ranch dressing and sour cream to make a sauce.
It’s up to you, but be creative. When you eat the artichoke, the leaf is dipped into a sauce before using your teeth to scrape the meat off. So, you want a sauce that compliments the artichoke and tastes good to you.
Boil 1st Grill 2nd
Boil the artichokes for about 20 minutes, you want the heart to be fork-tender. Then, remove them to a plate and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. These will need to be grilled for about 5 minutes. Boiling actually cooks them, and the grill basically chars them a bit and adds great flavor.
Serve them with the sauces, and a plate to discard the leaves.
Enjoy,
Sherri
Grilled Artichokes
Ingredients
- 1-2 Artichokes
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
- Olive Oil extra virgin
- 2 tbsp Old Bay Seasoning
Mayo Sauce
- 3 tbsp Mayonnaise
- 2 tsp Horseradish Sauce
Italian Sauce
- 3 tbsp Italian Dressing
- 1 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
Ranch Sauce
- 3 tbsp Ranch Dressing
- 1 tbsp Sour Cream
Instructions
- Rinse the artichoke with water and trim the tips off the leaves.
- Cut the artichoke in half lengthwise.
- Lay the artichoke halves with the center facing down and trim off the very top of the artichoke.
- Trim the bottom of the stem and use a vegetable peeler to peel off the outer skin of the stem. (The stem is edible)
- Cut the halves in half, which will make four quarters.
- Take a paring knife and carefully cut along the edge of the heart and cut out the fuzzy part and the small leaves.
- Boil the artichokes for about 20 minutes, until the heart is fork-tender.
- Remove the artichokes to a plate and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Grill for about 5 minutes.
To make the sauces
- Mix the two ingredients together for each sauce. Serve with a spoon.
Notes
