- 4
- 20 mins
- 60 mins
Ingredients
- 2 large globe artichokes
- 1 lemon
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 3/4 cup sliced shallots
- 3 cloves garlic, minced, about 1 Tbsp
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 cup dry white wine (such as a Sauvignon blanc)
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley leaves
- 2 Tbsp chopped fresh mint leaves
Preparation
Step 1
Use the serrated knife to cut the artichokes into quarters. Use a metal teaspoon to scrape away the hairy choke above the artichoke heart. Remove the small, papery, purplish leaves close to the choke. Rub the cut areas again with lemon. Place the quartered artichoke hearts into the bowl of acidulated water as you finish prepping them.
Heat olive oil on medium heat in a thick-bottomed pot that will hold all of the artichokes tightly in a single layer. (Choose a pot with a tight-fitting lid.) When the oil is hot, add the shallots and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and cook an additional minute.
Add the white wine, water, bay leaves, and salt to the pot. Make sure there is enough liquid to cover the bottom of the pan by 1/4-inch. If not, add more water until there is. Bring to a simmer, and simmer for a minute. Place the quartered artichokes, cut side down in a single layer, in the pot. Bring to a boil on high heat. Cover the pot with a tight fitting lid and lower the heat to medium. Simmer for 20 minutes. (If it looks like the pot is at risk of running out of liquid, add more hot water to the pot.) Then toss with the parsley and mint, turning the artichokes over to coat them with the sauce, cover again, and cook for an additional 5 to 15 minutes, until the leaves are tender and are easy to pull off the artichoke.
Let cool to slightly warm or room temperature. Serve with some of the pan juices and shallots from the braising liquid. Especially good if you make a day ahead, giving the cooked artichokes more time to marinate. Just chill, and return to room temperature before serving.
I am a real fan of artichokes and I will eat them any which way I can other than boiled in water. I devour them raw, braised, steamed etc….But let me say that these are by far the best I’ve ever had and for a couple of reasons. One being that the combination of the wine, shallots, garlic and parsley gives such a delicious taste. Second, I ended up adding a little more of the wine and other ingredients then cooked some Gemelli pasta which I then added to the pot where the chokes cooked in and mixed it with the juice and all. OMG, what a delicious combo. Next time I will cook them as the recipe calls for but will keep the chokes hearts and add them to the pasta. Wowww Elise, that is a perfect spring dish because its even better as a leftover. Thanks for this great recipe.
Hi Gary, the last time I made these I made some plain penne pasta to with them, to which I added browned butter and some of the wine-cooked shallots from the artichokes. AMAZING. I’m so glad you like the artichoke recipe! Artichokes are at the top of the list of my favorite foods (second only to avocados), and this is just a great way to eat them.