15 Simple Artichoke Recipes

An artichoke is a cultivated, edible thistle formally known as a globe artichoke, or a French artichoke. Artichokes feature sharp outer leaves and a fluffy choke in the center. The choke, or the artichoke heart, is thick and meaty in texture, and you can steam, stir-fry, bake, grill, and braise it. You can also scrape artichoke meat from the leaves on the exterior of the bottom third of the artichoke.

You can purchase whole fresh artichokes, baby artichokes, and canned artichokes from the grocery store. Follow these recipes for how to prep and cook artichokes in a variety of ways:

1. 1. Artichoke bruschetta: Artichoke bruschetta combines the flavors of artichoke dip with French bread to create a cheesy, tangy appetizer. Bruschetta is a classic Italian appetizer consisting of grilled bread rubbed with garlic and finished with a drizzle of olive oil. In Italy, bruschetta refers to the grilled bread, but in other parts of the world, bruschetta refers to the topping—such as a savory artichoke spread—on the grilled bread. A relatively easy appetizer to make, artichoke bruschetta can be elegant finger food at a fancy party or a satisfying, casual snack at a potluck.
2. 2. Artichoke hummus: Artichoke hummus is a variation of classic hummus dip that adds artichokes to the chickpea, olive oil, lemon juice, and tahini puree. You can serve this dip with pita chips, bread, crackers, or veggies. It is also gluten-free, making it a healthy party dip.
3. 3. Artichoke salad: This Greek salad features marinated artichoke hearts and primarily Mediterranean ingredients, such as olive oil, feta cheese, and herbs. To make the side dish, you typically toss artichoke hearts with olive oil and vinegar dressing.
4. 4. Artichoke soup: Artichoke soup is a creamy vegetable soup featuring puréed artichoke hearts. Most artichoke soups include other vegetables like onions, garlic, celery, carrots, and potatoes and herbs like thyme and bay leaves, cooked in chicken stock or vegetable stock.
5. 5. Artichoke tapenade: Tapenade is a savory spread typically made of black olives and capers that you can enjoy as an appetizer or dip. While usually associated with the Provençal area of France, you can also find Mediterranean-style tapenades that include artichoke hearts, red peppers, or pine nuts, in addition to olives.
6. 6. Artichoke pesto: Artichoke pesto sauce is an all-purpose condiment featuring artichoke hearts, garlic, lemon, and aged cheese like Asiago or Parmesan. In Italian, “pesto” means “to crush” or “to pound” and refers to a general technique rather than a specific dish. You can serve artichoke pesto as a condiment, dip, sauce, or spread.
7. 7. Artichoke stew: This artichoke stew recipe involves braising artichokes with veggies, chicken stock, and herbs. You can serve this stew as a side dish or a main dish.
8. 8. Crab artichoke dip: Crab artichoke dip is an appetizer consisting of finely chopped artichoke hearts, cooked crabmeat, cream cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, and various spices. The dip may also feature additional ingredients, such as roasted red peppers, hot sauce, capers, and green onion. Cooks typically serve the dip warm or chilled alongside tortilla chips, crudités platters, or crusty chunks of bread.
9. 9. Creamy artichoke chicken: This main dish is baked in a cream cheese-based sauce featuring marinated artichoke hearts. Boneless skinless chicken breasts or a combination of breasts and bone-in chicken thighs are the most popular cuts for this classic recipe. Spinach is a staple addition to the dish—a nod to creamy spinach artichoke dip.
10. 10. Grilled artichokes: Grilling artichokes gives the vegetables a smoky flavor and crunchy texture. First, steam the artichokes before grilling until their edges are crispy. You can serve grilled artichokes as an appetizer side dish with lemon butter, sour cream, a lemon aioli, a Greek yogurt sauce, or even a sesame dipping sauce.
11. 11. Fried artichokes: Fried artichokes are juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside. Frying artichokes allows you to fully consume the inner leaves of the artichoke (you will still need to discard the stiff outer leaves). Halve the artichokes, then bread and fry the artichoke halves in a pan of hot oil. You can serve fried artichokes with a dipping sauce of lemon garlic aioli, hollandaise, blue cheese, or za’atar. You can also serve the fried artichokes in a salad, tossing them with kale and a vinaigrette of lemon juice and olive oil.
12. 12. Roasted artichokes: The most basic way to prepare artichokes is to season them with salt, pepper, and olive oil and roast them in the oven. You can serve the roasted artichokes as an appetizer or side dish with roasted garlic aioli and fresh lemon or a melted butter dipping sauce.
13. 13. Spinach artichoke pasta: Spinach artichoke pasta features cream cheese and Parmesan cheese tossed with veggies and Italian pasta. After tossing, top the pasta with mozzarella and bake in the oven. You can serve spinach artichoke pasta as a main dish.
14. 14. Stuffed artichokes: Stuffed artichokes is an Italian main dish of fresh artichokes filled with breadcrumbs, garlic, and Parmesan cheese, baked in the oven until tender.
15. 15. Vegan spinach artichoke dip: This dairy-free spinach and artichoke dip uses cashews, almond milk, and nutritional yeast.

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