Pan-Seared Artichokes with Olive Oil and Lemon

If you avoid buying fresh artichokes because you think preparing them for cooking is a hassle, try forcing yourself to drop a couple in your cart at the market next time. Once you’ve gone through the simple steps of removing the inedible parts to get to the delicious, earthy insides of this beautiful vegetable, you’ll see how easy—and worth the effort—the preparation really is.

Artichokes

Even if you’re not including lemon as a main part of the dish’s flavor, you still need to drop the cleaned artichoke pieces into a lemon-water bath after you prepare them. The flesh of the vegetable oxidizes quickly when exposed to air (think avocado), but fresh lemon juice helps keep if from turning brown too quickly. Some discoloration is inevitable, but it has no effect on the great flavor of the artichoke.

Lemon-Water Bath

Artichokes can be cooked in a variety of ways, such as steaming, roasting, grilling, simmering in water, or pan-searing in oil. Before roasting or grilling, it’s best to simmer the prepped pieces in water a few minutes to help tenderize the leaves.

That step isn’t necessary here since pan-searing allows the hot oil to do the work for you. I use extra virgin olive oil when cooking artichokes in this method because the oil is an important, tasty part of the dish. 

No matter how you cook them, artichokes usually turn out with a few leaves too tough or chewy to eat. Just shove those to the side of the plate and enjoy the tender stems and smaller leaves. And if you can find baby artichokes (available in springtime), opt for those. The preparation is the same, but they tenderize more quickly and thoroughly than the larger ones.

Serves 2-3

Ingredients

• 1 large lemon, sliced lengthwise into 6 wedges
• 2 firm, medium artichokes
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• fresh lemon juice, for serving (optional)

Preparation

1. Squeeze the juice from the lemon wedges into a large bowl. Add the squeezed wedges to the bowl and fill about halfway with cold water.
2. Working with one artichoke at a time, break off the tough outer leaves until you reach the more tender yellowish leaves underneath. Trim down the stem with a pairing knife to remove the outer woody layer.
3. Cut off about 1 inch from the top of the artichoke and 1/4 inch from the bottom of the stem (less for a baby vegetable).

Trimmed Artichoke 

Tip-End Removed

Halved Piece with Fuzzy Choke

1. Cut the artichoke in half vertically to expose the fuzzy, sometimes purplish, choke in the center. This isn’t edible, so scoop it out with a spoon and pull out any small leaves close to it that have fuzz on them.

Choke Removed

1. Cut each half in half vertically and place the artichoke quarters in the lemon-water bath. Repeat the procedure with the remaining artichoke.

Artichoke Quarters in Lemon-Water Bath

1. Heat a large, nonstick skillet over medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of oil. Place the artichoke quarters in the skillet in a single layer along with 2-3 lemon wedges from the bowl. Season generously with salt and pepper.
2. Cover the pan and sear until beginning to brown on one side, 3-4 minutes. Turn and sear another 3-4 minutes, leaving the pan uncovered and adding more oil if it becomes too dry.

Artichokes Beginning to Sear

Artichokes Seared on 1 Side

1. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan, and simmer the artichokes gently until tender and browned, 8-10 minutes, depending on size, turning occasionally. (Turn the lemon wedges as well to prevent burning.)

Pan-Seared Artichokes

To serve, divide the artichokes between 2 or 3 plates. Re-season with salt and pepper and drizzle fresh lemon juice over all, if desired.