We posted a baby artichokes dish before. Since it is (was) the season for baby artichokes, we got another dozen. As I understand it, baby artichokes come from exactly the same plant as regular artichokes but they are the smaller buds which grow on the lower branches. This time, I did the cleaning and cooking of the artichokes rather than my wife. I decided to make sautéed artichokes with pancceta and olives mostly because we had pancceta.
Preparing the baby artichokes: I used my usual quick cleaning method. I just removed the outer petals until I exposed the inner petals which were only top 1/3 green. I cut off the top 1/3 of the green parts. Using a small paring knife, I cut off the end of the stem and peeled the skin. I also quickly cleaned the remnants of the outer petals around the base. Unless it is very small, I cut the artichokes in half. I removed any chokes that may have developed using the tip of the knife. It sounds complicated and tedious but once you get used to this process, it goes fairly quickly. I threw the cleaned artichokes into acidulated water (water plus lemon juice) to prevent discoloration.
Sautéing: In a frying pan, I added olive oil (1 tbs) and finely chopped pancceta (3 slices) on medium low flame. I rendered the fat from the pancceta and made it brown and crispy by sautéing for several minutes. I set the pancceta aside on a paper towel lined plate. In the same pan I added shallot (1 medium, finely chopped) and garlic (one clove finely chopped) on medium-low flame. After a few minutes, I added the baby artichokes, olives (I used an assortment of black olives, some requiring pitting). I sauteed for a few more minutes and added white vermouth (or white wine, 1-2 tbs) and kept braising until the liquid was almost all gone. I added salt, black pepper and chopped parsley. I served it topped with the crispy pancceta and shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.
This is a good accompaniment for wines; either white or red. We had this with Robert Young Estate Winery Red Winery Road Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2005. This is a middle of the road decent cab--very good if not spectacular.
Preparing the baby artichokes: I used my usual quick cleaning method. I just removed the outer petals until I exposed the inner petals which were only top 1/3 green. I cut off the top 1/3 of the green parts. Using a small paring knife, I cut off the end of the stem and peeled the skin. I also quickly cleaned the remnants of the outer petals around the base. Unless it is very small, I cut the artichokes in half. I removed any chokes that may have developed using the tip of the knife. It sounds complicated and tedious but once you get used to this process, it goes fairly quickly. I threw the cleaned artichokes into acidulated water (water plus lemon juice) to prevent discoloration.
Pre-cooking: I boiled the cleaned baby artichokes for 15 minutes in salted water (image below left). You can see one with undeveloped choke (right of the right image below) and one with the choke which was removed (left of the right image below).
Sautéing: In a frying pan, I added olive oil (1 tbs) and finely chopped pancceta (3 slices) on medium low flame. I rendered the fat from the pancceta and made it brown and crispy by sautéing for several minutes. I set the pancceta aside on a paper towel lined plate. In the same pan I added shallot (1 medium, finely chopped) and garlic (one clove finely chopped) on medium-low flame. After a few minutes, I added the baby artichokes, olives (I used an assortment of black olives, some requiring pitting). I sauteed for a few more minutes and added white vermouth (or white wine, 1-2 tbs) and kept braising until the liquid was almost all gone. I added salt, black pepper and chopped parsley. I served it topped with the crispy pancceta and shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.
This is a good accompaniment for wines; either white or red. We had this with Robert Young Estate Winery Red Winery Road Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2005. This is a middle of the road decent cab--very good if not spectacular.
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