What part of the artichoke do you eat?

@reinydawn (11643)
United States
January 11, 2009 10:21am CST
Yesterday we were out running around, doing all kinds of stuff, and we decided to stop at The Cheesecake Factory for lunch. We really like it there and have always had great food there. We were kinda hungry, it was right around lunch, and we knew this would really be our only meal for the day. They always give you a lot of food so if we didn't finish it, that would be dinner for later. We decided to try a different appitizer, grilled artichoke. We like artichoke hearts so we thought we'd like this. Well, it was everything BUT the heart. It was just the hard outside leaves. We weren't even sure how/what we were supposed to eat. Needless to say, we won't be getting THAT again. Our lunches were ok, mine was kinda dry, but still tasty. And of course the cheesecake for dessert was AWESOME! So, how are you supposed to eat the leafy oustide of an artichoke? I didn't even know you were supposed to eat that part...
10 responses
• United States
12 Jan 09
reiny I am from CA and we eat the artichoke the whole artichoke. Well the leaves you pull apart and you scrape the bottom part of the inside of the flesh off the leaves. It is not much you get off the leaves but it is tasty. As you work down to the core you can eat more of the leaf. It is not uncommon to dip the artichoke leaves in something I was taught to dip them miracle whip and as I grew up I learned to dip them in butter or vinegar and oil salad dressing. YUM
@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
12 Jan 09
They did have 2 dips for it. I just didn't get a whole lot of the fleshy part. It was very disappointing...
1 person likes this
• United States
12 Jan 09
with an artichoke there is not much fleshy part. It is the chase it half the fun.
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@owlwings (43907)
• Cambridge, England
11 Jan 09
The bottoms of the leaves (where they are attached to the heart) are soft. You tear off a leaf, put the base of it in your mouth and use your teeth to scrape of the soft bit. When you have dealt with all the leaves, you are left with a bunch of hairs (called the 'choke') which sits on top of the heart (which you must have missed!). It is what's known as a 'conversational' hors d'oevre (or 'starter') it's one of those which is designed to take a long time to eat so that conversation may flow. It also gives the chef time to prepare the next course! Grilling is one way of preparing artichokes. Personally, I prefer to boil them gently in stock for about 20 minutes and then serve them warm with a vinaigrette. I visited a Cheesecake Factory in Marina del Rey and was disappointed. The place appeared to be classy but was really a little tacky when you gave it a second look. The menu seemed to be mostly variations on steak - basically steaks with different sauces and sides. There were one or two chicken dishes but no pork or lamb, for example. I found it difficult to choose a dish which was truly original and different - and not rather over priced for what you get.
@owlwings (43907)
• Cambridge, England
12 Jan 09
Many restaurants will take the 'choke' out before serving. You should still have the leaves and the 'heart', though.
1 person likes this
@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
12 Jan 09
We actually cut the base out and ate the fleshy part. I don't remember seeing any "hairs" though... The Cheesecake Factory's that I've been in have a very wide variety of food, and they give you lots of it. Sometimes we only order one meal and split it. I usually stick with their pasta dishes, I've never been disappointed with them.
@howard96h (11640)
• New York, New York
12 Jan 09
I make stuffed artichokes and you take off each leaf and scrape off the stuffing and meat from the leaf until you get to the center where the heart is. There are different ways to prepare artichokes, my family always stuffs them.
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@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
12 Jan 09
I've heard of that also, but never had it. One day I might have to make it and see :)
@tyc415 (5706)
• United States
11 Jan 09
My son and I were talking about artichoke the other day. My husband is a picky eater so I knew what his answer would be so I never even ask him food questions. I ask my son if he has ever eaten artichoke and he said no, I have never eaten it either. I have always heard about and see artichoke hearts on the cooking shows but I don't guess I have ever seen anyone eating or trying to eat anything other than the heart. Can you tell me what the artichoke heart tastes like? I also never knew that the Cheesecake Factory served food other than cheesecake since I don't go in there because I don't like cheesecake. I learn something new most every day.
1 person likes this
@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
12 Jan 09
The Cheesecake Factory has a full menu - all kinds of stuff actually. And it's very good (normally). They have a lot of variety of cheesecakes and my husband will always have a few bites (or half of the slice I get) even though he hates cheesecake also. We get marinated artichoke hearts for salads and also a chicken meal I cook, so it's a bit like italian dressing on it. I don't know of anything that they taste like (it's not like "it tastes like chicken") but they are good. Even when they aren't marinated - sometimes I get the plain ones.
@tyc415 (5706)
• United States
12 Jan 09
Thank you for that info. I didn't know if it had a taste sort of like any certain vegetable or not but I guess not.
1 person likes this
• United States
12 Jan 09
I usually steam them or boil them in salt water. I will steam them for aprox 30 minutes or untill the stem is soft and tender. Then I will take them and pick off the outer leaves one at a time dip them in mayo and drag my teeth across the inside of each leave scraping off a small bit of pulp from the leaf. You dont get much with each leaf more of just a small taste but that is how I have always eaten them. Once all the leaves are gone and I am in to the heart I will remove all the fuzz not sure what its really called but thats what it looks like to me. It would be the seeds I then peal the stem and eat the whole thing dipped in mayo or butter. Hope that helps explain how to eat it just a little bit better. Happy my lotting.
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@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
12 Jan 09
Yeah, that's pretty much what we did, although we kinda felt like we were doing something wrong. I just wasn't expecing it to be so much work for so little food. Good thing it was the appetizer and not the meal!
• United States
12 Jan 09
I honestly have no idea. I would have probably eaten that whole thing. I didn't know that that part was edible. I'm a little surprised that you thought the lunches were just ok. I've always thought that Tha Cheesecake factory make great food and have always been impressed with what I got to eat. I'm curious as to what you had so I know not to order as to never be disappointed by going there.
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@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
13 Jan 09
We normally love The Cheesecake Factory. But I had the orange chicken I think, and it was really dry. I wanted to ask the waitress for more sauce, but she never really came by. We aren't usually in that area, so it's a different one than we have gone to in the past. We just got a new one by us and we might be going there this weekend with some friends, hopefully it'll live up to our expectations!
• Regina, Saskatchewan
12 Jan 09
I love artichokes and eat them whenever I can get them. But I think the Cheesecake Factory was 'cheaping out' when they served the outer leaves. In my experience, the outer leaves properly cooked (stuffed or boiled with seasonings) are best eaten by remove each leaf, putting it between your teeth and the drawing it out of your mouth while you bite down enough to get the soft centre of the leaf out of it. Then when all the outer leaves are gone, you can cut up and eat the whole heart. Sorry for your experience, and no, I wouldn't be ordering 'fried artichoke leaves' as an appetizer ever!
1 person likes this
@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
12 Jan 09
We sure didn't get a lot of the fleshy part, which was very disappointing. I also kinda felt weird eating them - they didn't look like a "finger food" but that was the only way to get what little fleshy part we could. Except at the base, we cut that part out!
• United States
12 Jan 09
Thats funny, one of my high school boyfriends invited me over for dinner and what do ya know, dinner was artichoke (no hearts,lol). I had no clue how to eat it either and just stared at it out of the corner of my eye trying to think of how I could and then I saw my boyfriend eating it as others described--still, i found it kind of pointless because the 'soft' part of leave was not really worth my time i though, even with all the butter. I feel the same way about crabs too though, i just think its a little too much work for a little bit of meat so i dont mess with them, even when we go to buffets.
@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
12 Jan 09
It did seem kinda pointless... Although I have to disagree a bit with you on the whole crabs thing. I really don't consider picking crabs a meal though, it's more of a social activity!!
@Opal26 (17679)
• United States
12 Jan 09
Hey reiny! I would have been really disappointed too! I love artichoke hearts! I have heard that you are supposed to dip the outside leaves in butter sauce? Someone once told me that? I wouldn't like that either! I have still never been to the Cheesecake Factory and I don't think I would even order food! I would go right to the dessert and get me some Cheesecake! There is one here, but it is really crowded and very expensive, so I have heard! So if I ever do get there I am going straight for the Cheesecake!
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@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
12 Jan 09
I always save room for the cheesecake!!! I'll take my meal home if I have to, but I'm getting cheesecake. It is kinda expensive, but they give you a fair amount of food, which we usually take home with us for another meal.
@Fortunata (1135)
• United States
12 Jan 09
URgh, I hate artichoke, just the name wants to make me choke, lol. I also don't like asparagus. Cauliflower doesn't really taste like anything to me unless it has butter or cheese on it. Broccoli is okay. I hated Brussel Sprouts until my sister in law made them. Guess it just depends on who is cooking this stuff, too.
@reinydawn (11643)
• United States
12 Jan 09
You are right, the cook can make all the difference. My mother used to make sure all her veggies were cooked - VERY cooked. I did like them, but when I learned that they should only be steamed a bit, I liked them even more!