The non-opened bud of a plant from the genus Cynara is known in art as an artichoke. This is an amazing product - it looks prickly and grassy, after processing it turns into a delicious treat with a bright nutty flavor. It contains a large amount of potassium, as well as carotene, vitamin C and other valuable substances. Fresh artichokes quickly lose juice, so dishes from them must be eaten immediately. A simple way to preserve perishable kinara is pickling.
Pick your recipe
You will need
-
- 4-14 artichokes (depending on the recipe);
- 2 lemons;
- boiling water;
- salt and pepper to taste;
- 1-4 cloves of garlic;
- 200 g balsamic vinegar;
- wine vinegar to taste;
- 1-2 branches of parsley;
- 1-2 branches of dill;
- 1-2 branches of basil;
- 0.5 cups of olive oil.
Instruction manual
1
Select 4 fresh artichokes of uniform green color and clear them of the upper (most rigid and prickly) bract scales. Treat the stem with a peeler. At the same time, be sure to protect your hands with rubber gloves, since the dark coloring juice of this herb is extremely corrosive - it is very difficult to wash off the skin.
2
Cut off the top of each flower bud by about one third, and then remove with the tip of the knife all the prickly villi from the inside of the inflorescences. If the artichoke cores are too large, cut them into pieces. All slices prepared for pickling should be approximately the same size.
3
Dip the peeled and chopped artichokes in cool clear water, acidifying it with freshly squeezed lemon juice (1 fruit). In order for citrus to give more aromatic moisture, it is recommended to lower it in boiling water for 3-5 minutes before placing it in a juicer.
4
Do not delay artichokes after cleaning and cutting in the open air, since from it the inflorescences begin to quickly darken and lose their attractive appearance! Keep them in an acidic solution for about 1-1.5 hours.
5
Boil the processed raw materials in water with lemon juice (0.5 fruit) for half an hour, so that the inflorescences become very soft. Readiness can be checked with a fork.
6
Make marinade for artichokes. For him, mix fresh juice of 0.5 lemon, white wine vinegar, salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Add garlic clove minced in the garlic and chopped herbs of basil, parsley and dill.
7
Take out the hot inflorescences with a slotted spoon from the broth, put in a clean enameled bowl and pour in the mixture of vinegar, spices and seasonings. An hour later, pickled artichokes can already be served.
8
To prepare Kinara for longer storage, try a different marinade recipe. Prepare 14 small inflorescences according to the description in steps No. 1-5. Then drain the broth and fill the artichokes with a glass of balsamic vinegar and 0.5 cup of extra virgin olive oil.
9
Salt and pepper the inflorescences to your taste, put 4 chopped cloves of garlic and chopped parsley in a pan. Close the container tightly with a lid. Marinate artichokes for 20-30 minutes, after which the entire contents of the pan can be placed in sterilized jars and store the finished dish in the refrigerator.
note
Specialists especially recommend various dishes from fresh or pickled artichoke for the prevention of atherosclerosis, liver and gall bladder diseases. The salts of potassium and sodium contained in this medicinal plant are alkaline. They are indicated for gastritis with high acidity. However, artichokes are contraindicated for some people (for example, hypotensive patients and patients with decreased secretory function of the stomach). Do not get carried away with this product without consulting a nutritionist.