Instant Pot artichokes are the easiest and quickest way to enjoy this delicious spring vegetable. Here’s a quick tutorial on how to prepare and cook artichokes in a pressure cooker in less than 1 hour.
Cooking artichokes in a pressure cooker is a hands-off way to cook them for a perfect side dish or appetizer. If you’ve never tried them before, they taste similar to asparagus and Brussel sprouts, but with a mild nutty flavor to them.
How to make artichokes in Instant Pot:
To prepare artichokes:
- Rinse artichokes, slice off tops and trim off the stem.
- Take a pair of scissors and trim the thorny tops off the leaves.
- Then rub lemon on the cut side to prevent oxidation.
TIP: When buying artichokes, choose ones that feel heavy for their size and with tight leaves. Lighter artichokes indicate they’ve dried out. Tight leaves indicate how fresh they are, it’s a flower bud after all.
To cook artichokes:
- Pour water into your Instant Pot and put a steamer rack into the Instant Pot. Cut lemon and place wedges in and other aromatics of your choice.
- Arrange artichokes (I could fit 3 large artichokes in my 6qt IP) on the steamer rack, close the lid, and seal.
- Set the Instant Pot to cook on manual for 15- 20 minutes on high.
- Quick-release once the time is complete and open the lid. Take the artichokes out and serve.
Is it better to boil or steam artichokes?
Boiling is the best method because it helps artichokes to retain the moisture. However, steaming comes at a close second. So, like all things in life, choose the method that works best for you.
What’s the fastest way to cook artichokes?
I’d say Instant Pot is fastest and hands-free method to cook artichokes. I’ve heard of microwave method, but I have no experience with it, so I can speak about it with confidence.
What part of an artichoke is poisonous and how do you remove it?
Artichoke is actually not poisonous.
The parts you need to watch out for are the hairy choke inside (pictured in the image above on the right) and also the sharp outer portion of the leaves we trimmed off. These are both choking hazards.
Simply take a spoon, scoop out and discard the hairy choke in middle.
How do you serve and eat pressure cooker artichokes?
- Pull off the leaves one at a time and dip in your favorite dipping sauce or melted butter.
- Place petal down into your mouth and slide the leaf out of your mouth and pull it through your teeth to remove the pulp from the leaves. Discard the remaining petal. Continue until all the leaves have been enjoyed!
- Once you reach the heart part (it’s underneath the choke), you can cut it into slices and dip and enjoy it further.
My garlic aioli is a great dipping sauce for artichokes. But you can also simply serve it with melted butter.
I hope you love this recipe as much as I do! Let me know once you’ve tried it by leaving a comment below or sharing a photo and tagging @busy_cooks on Instagram!
Instant pot artichokes
Ingredients
- 2-3 large artichokes Note 1
- 1 lemon
- 1-2 cups water
Instructions
To prepare the artichokes:
- Rinse artichokes under cold water. Using a sharp serrated knife, cut 1-2 inches from the top for the artichokes and trim off the stem. Using kitchen shears, snip off the thorny tops of the leaves. Now, rub a cut lemon half all over the cut side of the artichokes to prevent oxidation and discoloration.
To cook:
- Pour 1-2 cups of cold water into the inner pot of Instant Pot. (1 cup for 6qt IP, 2 cups for 8qt IP.) Place a steamer rack in the pot and cut the lemon into slices or wedges and throw into the pot. You can also add any aromatics you like, such as garlic cloves, fresh herbs, bay leaves, etc. But I mostly stick to lemons and/or garlics.
- Arrange artichokes over the rack. It doesn’t really matter whether artichokes cut-side up or down. I’ve done it both ways and didn’t see any significant difference.
- Close the lid and make sure the valve is set to “sealing”.
- Set the Instant Pot to Pressure Cook/Manual for 20 minutes on high. (NOTE: It took about 10 minutes for IP to come to pressure.) For smaller artichokes (see notes), pressure cook for 15 minutes.
- Once the IP time is up, do a quick pressure release by turning the pressure valve to venting.
- Carefully open the lid. Using a pair of kitchen tongs, take the artichokes out and serve. Read the post below for tips on how to remove the choke, serve and eat artichokes. My garlic aioli is a great dipping sauce for artichokes. But you can also simply serve it melted butter.
Notes
Nutrition
* Disclaimer: All nutrition information are estimates only. Read full nutrition disclosure.
Sharing of this recipe is encouraged and appreciated. Copying of full recipe to any social media is prohibited.
Stay connected and join Busy Cooks community:
FACEBOOK | PINTEREST | INSTAGRAM
Comments + Reviews