Braised Whole Artichokes with White Wine, Fennel, and Orange
By Nicole KonstantinakosPublished on March 5, 2024
Time
1¼ hours
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
2 cups dry white wine 2 cups chicken or vegetable broth 2 cups water 1 large fennel bulb, 1 tablespoon fronds chopped, stalks discarded, bulb quartered10 garlic cloves, lightly crushed and peeled2 shallots, halved4 (3-inch) strips orange zest plus ½ teaspoon grated zest plus ¼ cup juice (1 orange)3 sprigs fresh thyme 1 tablespoon plus ¼ teaspoon table salt, divided4 artichokes (12 to 14 ounces each)1 tablespoon white wine vinegar 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Before You Begin
This recipe makes a dipping sauce with the braised vegetables. You can also serve the artichokes with Orange-Fennel Butter Sauce, mayonnaise, or your favorite vinaigrette. The leftover broth is delicious in risottos and soups.
Instructions
- Combine wine, broth, water, fennel bulb, garlic, shallots, orange zest strips and juice, thyme sprigs, and 1 tablespoon salt in Dutch oven. Working with 1 artichoke at a time, use serrated knife to cut off stem so artichoke sits flat on counter. Turn artichoke on its side and cut off top 1 inch of artichoke. Snap off any small leaves around base. (If tips of leaves are discolored, snip them off with kitchen shears, if desired.)
- Place artichokes stemmed side down in wine mixture. Bring mixture to boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low; cover; and simmer until outer leaves easily detach from artichokes and paring knife inserted into base meets no resistance, 50 to 60 minutes, adjusting heat as needed to maintain simmer.
- Using tongs or slotted spoon, remove artichokes from cooking liquid (turning artichokes and allowing any excess liquid to drain back into pot) and transfer to individual serving dishes. Let artichokes cool slightly while making sauce, about 10 minutes.
- Strain cooking liquid through fine-mesh strainer set over large bowl or container; discard orange zest strips, thyme sprigs, and any loose artichoke leaves. Transfer remaining solids (cooked fennel, shallots, and garlic) and ¼ cup cooking liquid to blender; reserve remaining cooking liquid for another use.
- Add vinegar, mustard, and remaining ¼ teaspoon salt to blender and process until smooth, about 1 minute. With blender running, add oil in steady stream until fully incorporated, about 5 seconds. Strain mixture through fine-mesh strainer into bowl, pressing firmly on solids to extract as much puree as possible; discard solids. Stir in fennel fronds and grated orange zest and season with salt, pepper, and vinegar to taste. Transfer sauce to individual serving bowls. Serve artichokes with sauce.
Time
1¼ hoursYield
Serves 4Ingredients
2 cups dry white wine
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 large fennel bulb, 1 tablespoon fronds chopped, stalks discarded, bulb quartered
10 garlic cloves, lightly crushed and peeled
2 shallots, halved
4 (3-inch) strips orange zest plus ½ teaspoon grated zest plus ¼ cup juice (1 orange)
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 tablespoon plus ¼ teaspoon table salt, divided
4 artichokes (12 to 14 ounces each)
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
2 cups dry white wine
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 large fennel bulb, 1 tablespoon fronds chopped, stalks discarded, bulb quartered
10 garlic cloves, lightly crushed and peeled
2 shallots, halved
4 (3-inch) strips orange zest plus ½ teaspoon grated zest plus ¼ cup juice (1 orange)
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 tablespoon plus ¼ teaspoon table salt, divided
4 artichokes (12 to 14 ounces each)
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
2 cups dry white wine
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 large fennel bulb, 1 tablespoon fronds chopped, stalks discarded, bulb quartered
10 garlic cloves, lightly crushed and peeled
2 shallots, halved
4 (3-inch) strips orange zest plus ½ teaspoon grated zest plus ¼ cup juice (1 orange)
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 tablespoon plus ¼ teaspoon table salt, divided
4 artichokes (12 to 14 ounces each)
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Artichokes are edible flower buds in the thistle family. Their spiky leaves and dense, heavy heads can make them seem intimidating, so we wanted a cooking method that was simple but sufficiently nuanced to bring out the best from this unique vegetable. We based this recipe on the simplest method we knew of for cooking artichokes, which is to steam or boil them whole until they're tender enough to pull apart by hand. We used this basic method, but rather than cooking whole artichokes in plain water, we braised them until they were fall-apart tender in an aromatic broth made with white wine, fennel, orange, garlic, shallots, and thyme. As an alternative to the most common sauces served with whole artichokes (drawn butter, mayonnaise, and vinaigrette), we repurposed the long-cooked vegetables from the broth to make a creamy dipping sauce.
Before You Begin
This recipe makes a dipping sauce with the braised vegetables. You can also serve the artichokes with Orange-Fennel Butter Sauce, mayonnaise, or your favorite vinaigrette. The leftover broth is delicious in risottos and soups.
Instructions
- Combine wine, broth, water, fennel bulb, garlic, shallots, orange zest strips and juice, thyme sprigs, and 1 tablespoon salt in Dutch oven. Working with 1 artichoke at a time, use serrated knife to cut off stem so artichoke sits flat on counter. Turn artichoke on its side and cut off top 1 inch of artichoke. Snap off any small leaves around base. (If tips of leaves are discolored, snip them off with kitchen shears, if desired.)
- Place artichokes stemmed side down in wine mixture. Bring mixture to boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low; cover; and simmer until outer leaves easily detach from artichokes and paring knife inserted into base meets no resistance, 50 to 60 minutes, adjusting heat as needed to maintain simmer.
- Using tongs or slotted spoon, remove artichokes from cooking liquid (turning artichokes and allowing any excess liquid to drain back into pot) and transfer to individual serving dishes. Let artichokes cool slightly while making sauce, about 10 minutes.
- Strain cooking liquid through fine-mesh strainer set over large bowl or container; discard orange zest strips, thyme sprigs, and any loose artichoke leaves. Transfer remaining solids (cooked fennel, shallots, and garlic) and ¼ cup cooking liquid to blender; reserve remaining cooking liquid for another use.
- Add vinegar, mustard, and remaining ¼ teaspoon salt to blender and process until smooth, about 1 minute. With blender running, add oil in steady stream until fully incorporated, about 5 seconds. Strain mixture through fine-mesh strainer into bowl, pressing firmly on solids to extract as much puree as possible; discard solids. Stir in fennel fronds and grated orange zest and season with salt, pepper, and vinegar to taste. Transfer sauce to individual serving bowls. Serve artichokes with sauce.
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