Steamed Artichokes are a wonderful side dish for just about any main dish. We love them at our house and most often make them with steaks. Try them the next time you’re grilling, you’ll love them.
What you need for Steamed Artichokes
Artichokes
Lemons
Garlic
What you need for the dipping sauce
Mayonnaise
Garlic
Melted butter
Kosher salt
How to cook Steamed Artichokes
First, carefully trim the artichokes. A serrated knife works well. Cut off the stem flush to the bottom of the artichoke. Then cut off about 1/3 of the top. Using scissors, cut the sharp tip off of each leaf.
I’ve used a pasta pot with a built in strainer to steam artichokes. There isn’t a lot of room in a standard sized stockpot or pasta pot for 4 large artichokes. I prefer to use a large, deep fry pan with a lid. The 4 artichokes fit perfectly in this large and wide pan. Rinse the artichokes and place them in the fry pan. Add about 2 inches of water to the pan, enough to cover the bottom stem portion of the artichoke.
next cut two of the lemons in half. Squeeze lemon juice over the artichokes and into the water. Add the squeezed lemons to the water, around the artichokes. Add 2 teaspoons of minced garlic to the water.
Cover and bring to a boil on high heat. Lower the heat to a simmer. Simmer the artichokes for about 30 minutes, until a fork will pierce the heart at the bottom of the artichoke. Use tongs to carefully lift an artichoke to test the heart for doneness. Add more water if necessary while the artichokes are steaming.
How to make the dipping sauce
There are a lot of options for artichoke dipping sauces. Some people love mayonnaise, some love melted butter. You can also use Italian dressing, which I think is good if you’re eating the artichoke cold. At our house, we love both mayonnaise and melted butter. So we decided to use both and added garlic. This is the perfect dipping sauce for artichokes.
Line up 4 dipping bowls. To each bowl add 2 tablespoons of the mayonnaise. Add 1 teaspoon of minced garlic around the sides of the mayonnaise.
Now add 3 tablespoons of melted butter around the mayonnaise to cover the garlic. Sprinkle the mayonnaise with 1/2 teaspoon of coarse salt.
Serve
Cut the third lemon into quarters lengthwise. Serve the artichokes with the dipping sauce and a wedge of lemon.
Steamed Artichokes
Ingredients
- For the artichokes
- 4 artichokes
- 3 lemons
- 2 teaspoons garlic
- For the dipping sauce
- 8 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 4 teaspoons minced garlic
- 12 tablespoons melted butter
- 2 teaspoons coarse salt
Directions
- Step 1 Trim the artichokes. Cut off the stem flush to the bottom of the artichoke. Cut off about 1/3 of the top. A serrated knife works well. Using scissors, cut the sharp tip off each leaf.
- Step 2 Rinse the artichokes and place them in a large, deep frypan that has a lid. Add about 2 inches of water to the pan, enough to cover the bottom stem portion of the artichoke.
- Step 3 Cut two of the lemons in half. Squeeze lemon juice over the artichokes and into the water. Add the squeezed lemons to the water.
- Step 4 Add 2 teaspoons of minced garlic to the water.
- Step 5 Cover and bring to a boil on high heat. Lower the heat to a simmer. Simmer for about 30 minutes, until a fork will pierce the heart at the bottom of the artichokes. Use tongs to carefully lift an artichoke to test for doneness. Add more water if necessary.
- Step 6 Line up 4 dipping bowls. To each bowl add 2T of mayonnaise.
- Step 7 Add 1t of minced garlic around the sides of the mayonnaise.
- Step 8 Add 3T of melted butter around mayonnaise to cover the garlic.
- Step 9 Sprinkle the mayonnaise with 1/2 t of Kosher salt.
- Step 10 Cut the third lemon into quarters lenghtwise.
- Step 11 Serve the artichokes with the dipping sauce and a wedge of lemon.
