02 Jun Jerusalem artichokes

Jerusalem artichokes

Well it is officially winter is here and I for one am excited about this root vegetable which I only discovered last year when it was served to me in a Perth restaurant with mushrooms. They look very similar to ginger in shape only and is part of the sunflower family. Their taste is hard to describe but they have a crunchy texture which goes very well with contrasting vegetables.
They are an excellent source of dietary fibre, have a good amount of iron; considered the highest amount among edible roots, vitamin C, magnesium as well as some protein (see protein really is on so many plant foods) and also contains small levels of some of valuable B-complex group of vitamins such as folates, pyridoxine, pantothenic acid, riboflavin, and thiamine.
The artichoke flesh will discolour if exposed to air so place the peeled vegetable in a bowl of acidulated water until ready to cook, treat them similar to potatoes in that you can roast, sauté fry or puree them

I have only seen them at my local market but am sure that they are in most places that sell fresh vegetables.

Recipe: Jerusalem Artichoke with Mushrooms and Thyme

Ingredients
• 900g Jerusalem artichokes
• 30g Butter
• 25ml Olive oil; divided use
• 1 Onion; chopped
• 1 c White wine
• 1 Bay leaf
• 1 1/2 lb Fresh mushrooms
• 4 Garlic; minced
• 1 sm Lemon
• 1 1/2 ts Fresh thyme, chopped
• Salt and pepper
Preparation
1. Peel and halve the Jerusalem artichokes.
2. In a large pan, heat butter and 2 tablespoons olive oil.
3. Add the onion and fry 2 minutes.
4. Add Jerusalem artichokes, white wine, bay leaf and water to cover.
5. Bring to boil, and cook on low heat until the Jerusalem artichokes soften, about 1 hour.
6. Meanwhile, thinly slice a small lemon (don’t peel).
7. Add the mushrooms to the pan, then the thyme, lemon slices and 3 tablespoons olive oil, and cook another 20 minutes.
8. Serve warm.