This artichoke hearts braised in olive oil recipe is a Turkish classic with tender artichokes, aromatics like peas, carrots, and potatoes, as well as delicious olive oil! The recipe comes straight from a famous artichoke restaurant in Izmir. This Turkish "zeytinyağlı enginar" is vegan, gluten-free, and otherwise allergy-friendly.
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This recipe comes directly from one of my favorite places to eat in the Aegean: Artemis Restaurant in Seferihisar. Almost everything on the menu contains artichoke that comes directly from the farm that the restaurant overlooks. An artichoke lover’s dream!
The family business has been around for decades and we’ve been going since 2011. They’re so nice and warm, that they gave us a recipe with all its details for the most classic artichoke dish in Turkey— artichoke hearts braised in olive oil. I believe a very similar dish exists in Italy as well, known as “carciofi alla Romana”.
We went over the recipe multiple times to make sure we got everything right. The flavor of fresh Aegean artichokes in season is impossible to replicate elsewhere, but this dish tastes almost exactly the same! Takes me right back to the breezy porch of Artemis. Hope you’ll enjoy it just as much!
đź’ Why this recipe works so well...
If you like the flavor of artichoke but can't stand the fibrous texture, you need to try artichoke hearts! This recipe is a celebration of artichokes as it can technically be made with nothing but olive oil if you wish. Personally, I love the addition of aromatics and herbs for an elevated flavor profile.
The melt-in-your-mouth tender artichoke works perfectly as a spring or summer appetizer when served cold, and warm or at room temperature the rest of the year.
Most importantly, it comes directly from a restaurant that grows and serves over 50,000 artichokes each year! They must be doing something right.
🥕 Ingredient Rundown
This traditional recipe is made with a mixture of aromatics like onion and carrots, and braised in delicious extra-virgin olive oil for hours to become tender.
Artichokes
Get the biggest artichokes you can find! No baby artichokes. If you were to clean out a small one, the hearts will be left tiny! Not worth the effort of cleaning at all. Something this size or slightly smaller would be the minimum I'd use for this recipe to make it worthwhile:
The height of the artichoke harvest season depends on where you live, but for the majority of us, it's April or May. That's why you'll have the most luck finding a big artichoke in springtime!
If you can't find it anywhere, don't worry! Artichoke hearts from a jar will work too, like this one. However, most of them have citric or ascorbic acid used to preserve them—making the artichokes somewhat tart. Just decrease the amount of lemon juice in this recipe accordingly and you'll be all set!
Aromatic Vegetables
The traditional aromatic vegetables for this dish consist of onions, peas, carrots, potatoes, and sometimes garlic. As a big garlic fan, I always include it!
Olive Oil
There’s A LOT of olive oil in this dish. So much so that, in Turkish, it’s aptly named “zeytinyağlı” artichoke—meaning, “with olive oil”. Feel free to reduce the amount, but taste-wise I don’t recommend it 🙂
I'd highly suggest using the best olive oil you can find, as it's a co-star ingredient and you'll taste it with each bite. This isn't sponsored in any way, but I started to use the one we receive from seasonal Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club deliveries. The. Best!
Optional: Dill
The restaurant doesn’t add dill because some people despise it… not me! If you enjoy its flavor, definitely add some.
🔪 How to clean artichokes down to the hearts
There are several methods for "cleaning" artichokes depending on what you're trying to make with them. For example, you may want to give them a quick steam to scrape off the leaves or trim them further to make a Jewish fried artichoke dish. For this recipe, we're going all the way in to discard all fibrous texture.
Here's how you clean the artichokes down to the hearts:
1. Fill a large bowl with water and lemon juice and set the bowl aside. Clean the artichokes down to the hearts with a paring knife.
2. Trim off all the fibrous leaves and outer layer of the stem to expose the tender heart. The stem sometimes breaks off; that’s okay—you can still cook it alongside the hearts.
3. Clean out the choke using a spoon, scraping off all the hairy bits. Immediately place the cleaned artichokes into the bowl with lemon juice to keep them from turning dark as you work.
Try to keep all of them submerged. If you're working with a lot of artichokes, wet a kitchen towel and place over the bowl with the artichokes (in contact with the water) to keep them submerged throughout.
🥗 How to make Turkish artichokes
Mise-en-place
Mise-en-place really helps in this recipe. Dice and portion out all the ingredients prior to working with the artichokes to keep their color light throughout. Otherwise, they’ll oxidize faster than an avocado!
Placing the Ingredients
When you have all your ingredients ready to go, place the diced onion, carrot, and minced garlic at the bottom of a wide pan. Mix and place the artichoke hearts and stems on top—hearts down.
Add the diced potato and peas, salt, sugar, separated lemon juice and olive oil. If using dill, add at this stage. Press down with a heat-resistant plate. Add water right up to the bottom of the plate and put the lid on.
Cook on high heat for 3 minutes, then on low heat for 1 hour and 30 minutes. Keep the lid on the entire time. Let cool and serve slightly warm or cold as an appetizer. Keeps well in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to five days.
Goes very well with a glass of Sauv Blanc or other dry white wine! I love having zeytinyagli enginar alongside spinach borek or bell pepper dolmas.
âť“Artichoke FAQs
Any type will work as long as their globe diameters are larger than 4 inches. This means no baby artichokes.
Artichoke hearts from a jar will work too, like this one. However, most of them have citric or ascorbic acid used to preserve them—making the artichokes somewhat tart. Just decrease the amount of lemon juice in this recipe accordingly and you'll be all set!
Like most vegetables, artichokes have plenty of benefits! Artichokes are a great source of vitamin K and folate, as well as magnesium. They're high in fiber and are full of antioxidants.
You may simply reduce it by more than half, it's okay especially if it's for your health! It'll still be a great artichoke dish but just won't taste as rich.
🌊 Other Mediterranean recipes
Try some of these other popular Mediterranean / Aegean recipes to make alongside the artichokes!
You can save this recipe for later on Pinterest, and keep in touch with me on YouTube, or Instagram!
Please do leave a comment & a rating if you make this recipe! I make sure to respond to each one and it helps a ton. Afiyet olsun—bon appétit 🙂
Printđź“– Recipe
Artichoke Hearts in Olive Oil
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 4 Servings 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This artichoke hearts braised in olive oil recipe is a Turkish classic with tender artichokes, aromatics like peas, carrots, and potatoes, as well as delicious olive oil! The recipe comes straight from a famous artichoke restaurant from Izmir. This Turkish Zeytinyağlı enginar is vegan, gluten-free, and otherwise allergy-friendly.
Ingredients
- 4 artichokes (find the largest possible!)
- Juice of 2 lemons
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 carrot, peeled and diced
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- ½ cup potato, diced
- ½ cup peas
- ½ tsp table salt (or 1 tsp Kosher salt)
- 1 tbsp sugar
- ½ cup (~100ml) extra-virgin olive oil (use the best you can find)
- room-temperature water (final amount depends on pan size, usually 2+ cups)
Instructions
Cleaning the Artichoke
- Separate out 2 teaspoons of lemon juice. Fill a large bowl with water and the rest of the lemon juice and set aside.Â
- Clean the artichokes down to the hearts with a paring knife. Trim off all the fibrous leaves and outer layer of the stem to expose the tender heart. The stem sometimes breaks off; that’s okay—you can still cook it alongside the hearts. Clean out the choke using a spoon or ice cream scoop, scraping off all the hairy bits.
- Immediately place the cleaned artichokes into the bowl with lemon juice to keep them from turning dark as you work. Cover with a clean, wet kitchen towel to keep the artichokes submerged.
Placing the Vegetables
- Place the diced onion, carrot, and minced garlic at the bottom of a wide pan. Mix and place the artichoke hearts and stems on top—hearts down.
- Add the diced potato and peas, salt, sugar, separated lemon juice and olive oil. If using dill, add at this stage. Press down with a heat-resistant plate. Add water right up to the bottom of the plate and put the lid on.
- Cook on high heat for 3 minutes, then on low heat for 1 hour and 30 minutes. Keep the lid on the entire time.Â
- Let cool and serve slightly warm or cold as an appetizer. Keeps well in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to five days. Goes very well with a glass of Sauv Blanc or other dry white wine!
Notes
Mise-en-place really helps in this recipe. Dice and portion out all the ingredients (except the artichokes) prior to working with the artichokes to keep their color light throughout. Otherwise, they’ll oxidize faster than an avocado!
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hours 30 minutes
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Cook
- Cuisine: Turkish
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