Jerusalem Artichokes, Sunchokes to some, are stubborn buggers to clean. If someone hadn’t warned me otherwise, I would have been tempted to just be done with the caked on mud and peel the darn things. I’m glad I was patient — Cooking the ‘chokes with their skins helps preserve their crispness and earthiness. Just make sure you spend a good ten minutes scrubbing the tubers or else dinner is likely to be on the gritty side. I washed them, sliced them thin, then rinsed them again to dislodge the soil from the deep notches.

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  • Prep Time : 20 min
  • Ready Time : 20 min

Servings

4

Ingredients

  • 1 pkg pasta of choice (I used shells)
  • 1-2 pounds Jerusalem artichokes
  • 1 head flat leaf parsley
  • 4 tablespoons butter or olive oil
  • sea salt & freshly cracked pepper to taste
  • 2 lemons

Directions

Once you’ve sliced the artichokes thin, throw them in a steaming basket for about 5-10 minutes just to loosen up the fiber. While you wait, bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. In a large sauce pan or dutch oven, bring a bit of olive oil and butter to a sizzle. Transfer steamed ‘chokes and sauté for about 10 minutes to absorb the fat and slightly brown. Kill the heat. By now the pasta water should be boiling. Cook per packaging instructions until just past al dente. Remove. Strain. Rinse. Let dry. Then toss with the ‘chokes.

I LOVE parsley, so I used a whole head of leaves, chopped roughly. But a heaping cup or so would do. Toss into the pot of ‘chokes and pasta. Add juice of 2 or three lemons, a good shake of salt and pepper, and a few lugs of olive oil. Toss together to coat. For the omnivore, add chopped bacon or seared bay scallops.

 

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