Artichoke Process

Last class we had to pick a vegetable and prepare it two different ways. I chose artichokes. I had some background because my mom is a vegetarian and always makes vegetables for us and loves artichokes. So I was very familiar with the taste and prep for artichokes. However I have not made one myself, and my mom only used the microwave to make them. So, with the fresh artichoke’s my group decided to grill them and with the canned artichoke hearts, we decided to sauté them. I have never made or seen artichoke’s being made this way, so it was a new experience. We started out sautéing the hearts, and started out by melting butter, adding salt and pepper, garlic and onions. The problem was that we cooked them for too long and the butter became brown. It gave the artichokes a different flavor, which was delicious, but did not look very appetizing. The fresh artichoke’s we used the grill, but did not have much time to prepare them. So, we brushed them with canola oil to speed up the process and cook the artichoke faster. What we did not know was that we needed to cut it in half before we put it on the grill. So what ended up happening was the artichoke was hardly cooked on the inside, and fully cooked on the outside. We then decided to cut it in half so the inside cooked. I went home and asked if we could make artichokes for dinner so I could practice making them. I did not grill them, but I put them in the oven and they turned out really well. I decided to put them in a medium-large dish and cut the stem off and put a layer of butter under the artichokes, so they soaked in it. It was much more successful and now I know what works and what does not with artichokes.

Cam M.