A year ago, we were stationed up in Monterey, CA so my husband could attend grad school which was, obviously, a terrible place to be sent. We spent our free time hiking, exploring the coastline, buying everything at the gorgeous farmers market and learning that living together was actually really fun. But most importantly, we lived right down the street from the artichoke capital of the world (Castroville) and had our fair share of opportunities to develop and fine tune my favorite artichoke cooking technique to date. It’s a steam-roast technique that produces crispy caramelized edges and tender meat with a single sheet pan and foil packet. There are no water logged, spongy leaves from boiling the artichokes. No special steamer needed. No beautifully charred leaves that are so tough you can’t yank them off the heart. These are tender, flavorful and extremely low maintenance (as far as artichokes go). The artichokes can be prepped as early as the morning of and tossed in the oven 30- 45 minutes before you’re ready to eat. We always serve them with a creamy, herby dipping sauce. Some people swear by melted butter or plain mayonnaise, but I prefer the fresh herbs and lemony zing you’ll find in the sauce below. Enjoy!
If the choke is especially hard to remove without getting hairs everywhere, feel free to rinse the artichoke off in the sink. Just make sure to shake off as much extra water as you can then squeeze lemon juice over the cut surfaces again. Too much extra liquid on the sheet pan will cause the artichokes to steam more than roast, and they won’t get that delicious, crispy brown edge that’s key to this technique.
Cooking time can vary quite a bit depending on the size and age of the artichoke, so start checking around 30 minutes but don’t worry if they need longer to soften up.
Line sheet pan with enough aluminum foil that an extra 2 inches hang over all of the edges.
Using kitchen shears, trim off thorns from artichoke leaf tips. With a serrated knife, slice off 1 inch from the top of the artichoke. Pull off leaves near the base then slice off the dead end of the stem. Slice artichoke in half and squeeze lemon juice over all the cut surfaces. Use a spoon to scoop out and discard the hairy choke that covers the heart, then squeeze more lemon juice over the surface. Place artichoke cut side down on prepared pan (to minimize browning) and repeat with remaining artichokes. If the artichoke is covered in loose choke hairs, rinse it under the sink, shake off excess water and squeeze more lemon juice over the surface.
When all of the artichokes are trimmed, toss them with olive oil, salt and freshly ground black pepper and return cut side down on sheet pan.
Cover artichokes with aluminum foil. Roll the overhanging foil over all 4 edges of the top layer to create a sealed foil "packet". Roast artichokes for 30 minutes, then carefully peel back foil (don't get burned from the steam) and pull off a leaf or two. If they slip off easily, the artichokes are ready. If they need more of a tug to come out, reseal the foil packet and roast another 10 minutes then check again. Continue to roast until the undersides are caramelized, the leaves slip off easily and the meat is tender. Keep in mind that cooking times vary based on size and freshness of the artichokes.
Serve immediately with creamy chive dipping sauce.
Whisk all of the ingredients together in a small bowl. Taste, adjust with more lemon juice, salt or pepper if needed. Serve with roasted artichokes.