Artichokes are beautifully colored olive green and sometimes purple globes that always stand out amongst the other vegetables at the market. They may look intimidating, but they’re actually really easy to cook.
Using simple cooking methods like boiling and steaming softens the protective outer leaves and the artichoke heart. It’s a delicious appetizer to share as it requires a hands-on experience to eat.
This veggie is a perennial thistle that’s a member of the sunflower family. It’s also loaded with nutritional benefits such as fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, calcium, iron, and potassium. Other methods like roasting and pressure cooking can also be used, but require a little different preparation.
You will also obtain its beneficial effects by drinking the juice resulting from the cooking of its leaves. To prepare this infusion, immerse about twelve artichoke leaves for ten minutes in a cup (250 ml) of boiling water.
Strain it and drink it hot, preferably on an empty stomach or after dinner. As a vegetable it has always been highly appreciated in Mediterranean cuisine, and is a true source of health. The artichoke is one of the "star foods" in most diets to lose weight.
If you want to enjoy their flavor by cooking them in a healthy way, try them steamed or cooked, seasoned with olive oil, stuffed or in a vegetable stew.
PROPERTIES
- It fights constipation and favors digestion due to its high fiber content.
- It is purifying and diuretic. Helps eliminate toxins causing a greater amount of urine.
- Anti-cholesterol: limits the absorption of cholesterol in the intestine.
- Strengthens the immune system, due to its vitamin content.
- Regulates metabolism: helps treat anemia, diabetes, and fatty liver.
- It is antirheumatic: it helps fight gout or arthritis.
- Prevents gallbladder stones.
- Slimming: it has few calories, and its diuretic and anti-constipation effect help you lose weight.
- Choose them well: The most tender artichokes are those that are closed, with the leaves very crowded.
If you want to enjoy their flavor by cooking them in a healthy way, try them steamed or cooked, seasoned with olive oil, stuffed or in a vegetable stew.
Place the cut artichoke in lemon water so that the exposed trimmed leaves won’t brown. That exposed flesh oxidizes quickly when exposed to air. A dip in acidulated water can help prevent enzymatic browning of the vegetable by lowering the pH of the liquid environment and reducing enzyme activity.