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These Roman Artichokes (also known as Carciofi alla Romana in Italian) are one of the best ways to prepare fresh artichokes. They turn out tender and absolutely full of flavor!
This post was sponsored by Ocean Mist Farms but all thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you so much for supporting the brands that make Food with Feeling possible!
As you may or may not have seen on my Instagram, I spent much of the past month in Italy and returned home with SO SO many recipes that I could not wait to work on. One of those recipes: Roman Artichokes- or in Italian, Carciofi alla Romana! Italians *really* know their way around an artichoke and I had so many delicious artichoke recipes while I was there.
In fact, big cart-fulls of artichokes can be seen all over the country (especially in Rome) and it just made my love for them so much deeper. Thankfully for me, Ocean Mist grows some truly amazing artichokes just one state over from me in California. In fact, they’re the largest grower of fresh artichokes in the United States!
Through my partnership with Ocean Mist, I’ve discovered some truly amazing ways to cook them including in the air fryer, on the grill, and now: braised!
This Roman Artichokes dish is on the recipe of the majority of restaurants in Rome. I had it a solid FOUR times while I was there and every time it tasted different than the last. Every chef has their own way of preparing it and I’m not different.
The base of the recipe includes:
- Artichokes (either 4 large or 6 medium)
- Fresh parsley and mint
- Minced garlic
- Lemon
This recipe can be made with any type of artichoke you’d like including baby artichokes and purple artichokes HOWEVER cook times will definitely vary depending on the size. They take anywhere from 20-35 minutes to cook. The ones I used in my video and in my photos were on the larger size so they took about 35 minutes. But I’ve also made this with smaller artichokes that only took about 20 minutes to cook to tender.
The steam and the heart of the artichoke are my favorite parts. They’re SO tender and delicious! However, the whole artichoke is edible including the leaves (assuming they’re cooked long enough).
If you’ve never prepared an artichoke before, it can seem a little daunting. BUT DON’T WORRY! My video has a full walk through of how to do it- hopefully being able to see it while make it a lot more approachable!
To serve: I like to drizzle some good quality Italian olive oil over the top and squeeze on a little bit of lemon juice. The flavors are so simple and I love that the artichoke really gets to shine in this recipe without being completely covered in sauce.
Thanks again for supporting the brands that make Food with Feeling possible! You can CLICK HERE to learn more about Ocean Mist Farms, the products that they carry, and where you can buy them in your area.
Roman Artichokes
Ingredients
- 2 Lemons, halved
- 4 large artichokes or 6 medium artichokes
- 3 tablespoons of fresh Italian parsley, finely chopped
- 3 cloves of Garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons of fresh Mint, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon of sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon of black pepper
- ½ cup of olive oil
- Water
- Optional white wine ½ cup
Instructions
- Fill a large bowl with water and squeeze in the juice from 2 lemons. I usually drop the leftover lemon in to the water as well.
- Start by prepping your artichokes: gently tear all of the leaves off of the stem. Working around the base of the artichoke (just above the stem), tear off the bottom outer layer of leaves. For most artichokes, you want to remove the tougher outer leaves and get to the more tender leaves that are a little lighter in color at the bottom. For larger artichokes like mine, it usually ends up being about 2 layers of leaves around the base.
- Cut off the top portion of the artichokes (see photos for reference) as well as the discolored tip of the stem (I usually on cut off about 1/4 inch of the stem because once cooked, it’s delicious!).
- Roll the artichoke on a hard surface to help loosen the leaves. Using your fingers, gently loosen the artichoke leaves so that you can get to the center. Use a spoon to remove the inner hair like parts (see my video for reference).
- Using a knife or peeler, peel off the outer layer of the stem so that it smooths out the leaves you tore off and keep peeling the stem until it gets paler in color.
- Place the prepared artichokes in the lemon water while you keep working.
- In a bowl, mix together the parsley, garlic, mint, salt and pepper. Remove the artichokes from the water and squeeze lightly (stem facing up) to express as much water as possible. Gently stuff the herb mixture into artichokes, working it into the center as well as in between many of the leaves (see video).
- Place the artichokes, stem pointing up, into a large pot and pour in the olive oil, optional white wine, and then fill with water so that the liquid comes up 2/3 of the way up the base of the artichokes (NOT the stems).
- Bring to a simmer. Cover with a tight fitting lid and simmer for 25-35 minutes or until fork tender and very soft in the middle. This depends on the size of your artichokes (mine took closer to 35 being on the larger side).
- Remove from the pan and serve with a drizzle of high quality olive oil, lemon juice, and fresh herbs. ENJOY!
