Contents
Artichokes in the kitchen
What artichokes are the best ones?
The best artichokes are those with a good size and a reasonable weight. Care should be taken to choose those with tight leaves, but at the same time, when pressing a finger on them, leaves should show a certain movement.
Sometimes we find in the market artichokes with blackened leaves. This occurs especially in cold winters. It usually affects only to the outer part of the artichokes as they generally remain fresh inside. However, we should test that only the outer leaves are affected, so we will separate them a bit with our fingers. If the lower leaves remain white, we can choose them reliably.
The best way to verify that they are fresh is to press the wide area where the tail is as you get them close to your ear. Ideally, they squeak when pressed. If the finger goes down with ease, and no sound is produced, they are generally mushy. Also, if they have dark spots in this area, they should be discarded because they are not in good condition.
Preserving the artichokes
Once cut, artichokes are easily oxidized and turn black. To avoid this, it is best to place them in an airtight container or plastic bag and place them in the fridge. This way, we can keep them up to a week. Another trick to prevent browning is to wet them with lemon juice. The antioxidant properties of this juice prevent their oxidation and help keep them better.
Preparation and cooking of artichokes
When preparing artichokes, it should be borne in mind that these foods have a very strong dye that blackens the hands, so they will bring black stains inside your nails. As they are very difficult to remove, it is best to prevent this problem. So, when cutting or preparing your artichokes, you should use gloves.
A good way to clean artichokes is to remove the hard outer leaves, throw away the stalks, and leave them for 30 minutes in salted water. In this way, the water will remove any traces of dirt or other impurities from the interior of the leaves. Later, we must rinse them well to remove salt.
Artichokes can be cooked in many ways. There are plenty of recipes made from these foods. Among the different options we have the following:
List of artichoke recipes
Once cooked, artichokes should be eaten quickly or stored in the refrigerator.
More information on the artichokes.
