Mom’s Artichokes and Artichoke Dipping Sauce

Mom’s Artichokes and Artichoke Dipping Sauce is a recipe that brings back childhood memories for me because my mother loved artichokes and she’d make them occasionally for our family of 12! Use Artichoke Recipes if you’re also an artichoke fan!

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This weekend is Mother’s Day and on that day I’ll be missing my amazing mother and wishing I could have a nice dinner with her. And out of the 2,000+ recipes on my blog, this recipe for Mom’s Artichokes and Artichoke Dipping Sauce is probably the one that makes me miss my mother the most. I grew up in a family where most of us considered fresh artichokes to be a delicacy, thanks to a wonderful mom who taught us to like them. (Well most of us, I have a few siblings who didn’t get the artichoke gene.) My parents had a family of ten kids to feed, and even back then artichokes were pricey, so we never got them as often as we wanted them.

It wasn’t until I was well on the way to adulthood that I realized that some people didn’t eat artichokes, and had no idea how to cook them. My mother always steamed the artichokes in a big pot, and in this post I’ll show you how to cook them in a vegetable steamer. But if you’re a fan of the Instant Pot or pressure cooker, you might want to check out my updated post on How to Cook Artichokes in the Instant Pot or Stovetop Pressure Cooker and use one of those methods. And I do recommend my mother’s method for prepping the artichokes!

But no matter which cooking method you use, I hope you’ll try my Artichoke Dipping Sauce, which is a lower-carb version of my mom’s sauce that was made with Miracle Whip. No judgements from me if you’re a Miracle Whip fan, but I prefer Mayo and it doesn’t have the carbs that are in Miracle Whip.  I like my Artichoke Dipping Sauce with artichokes whether they’re hot or cold, but melted butter is also great for hot artichokes. Artichokes do have some carbs, but they are super high in fiber, so the net carbs aren’t that high and they’re considered a low-carb vegetable for that reason. And this is something I love to make for a treat!

How to Prepare Artichokes for Cooking:

No matter how I’m cooking them, I always cut my artichokes in half the way my mother did! I choose artichokes with the longest stem I can find, since the stems are tasty. I trim the stem and even peel them if there are some discolored parts.

Then I cut the entire  artichoke plus stem in half. The very center contains fuzz and inedible parts called the “choke”. Use a sharp knife and cut along the bottom of the choke (where it meets the artichoke heart) then grab the prickly part of the leaves and pull the choke out. This is the only part of the cooking process that is at all difficult.

How to Cook the Artichokes and Make the Dipping Sauce:

I like to use kitchen shears and cut off the sharp ends; but it’s optional and my mother certainly never did that. While you’re trimming the artichokes, put several inches of water into a stovetop vegetable steamer and let it come to a boil. (I like to add a few tablespoons of my fresh-frozen lemon juice, to keep the artichokes from turning brown, but my mother never used that.) When the water comes to a boil, put the artichokes in, cut side down.

Put the lid on the steamer and time for 25 minutes; then check (by piercing the artichoke heart with a fork) to be sure they are done. (Read How to Cook Artichokes in the Instant Pot or Stovetop Pressure Cooker if you prefer that method.)

While artichokes cook combine the mayo, sour cream, and fresh-frozen lemon juice to make the dipping sauce.

Let artichokes cool slightly and then eat with Mom’s dipping sauce.

More Artichokes to Swoon Over:

Ten Amazing Low-Carb Recipes with Artichokes ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen
The BEST Spinach Artichoke Dip ~ Spend with Pennies
Artichoke Antipasto Salad with Basil Vinaigrette ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen
Grilled Artichokes with Garlic Butter ~ Foodie Crush
Slow Cooker Frittata with Artichoke Hearts, Roasted Red Pepper, and Feta ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen

Print Recipe

Mom's Artichokes and Artichoke Dipping Sauce

Yield: 2 or 3 artichokes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Mom’s Artichokes and Artichoke Dipping Sauce is a recipe that makes me miss my amazing Mother!

Ingredients:

Artichoke Ingredients:

• 2 or 3 whole artichokes, stem trimmed, cut in half, and choke cut out
• water
• 1-2 T lemon juice (see notes)

Artichoke Dipping Sauce Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup mayo
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1-2 T lemon juice (see notes)

Directions:

Preparing Artichokes:

1. I choose artichokes with the longest stem I can find, since the stems are tasty.
2. Trim the stem and peel away any discolored parts.
3. I cut the entire  artichoke plus stem in half.
4. Then use a sharp knife and cut along the bottom of the choke (where it meets the artichoke heart), then grab the prickly part of the leaves and pull the choke out. (This is the only part of the cooking process that is at all difficult.)
5. I like to use kitchen shears and cut off the sharp ends of the leaves; but it’s optional.

Cooking Artichokes:

1. While you’re trimming the artichokes bring, put several inches of water into a stovetop vegetable steamer and let it come to a boil. (I like to add a few tablespoons of my fresh-frozen lemon juice, to keep the artichokes from turning brown, but my mother never used that.)
2. When the water comes to a boil, put the artichokes in, cut side down.Put the lid on the steamer and time for 25 minutes; then check (by piercing the artichoke heart with a fork) to be sure they are done.
3. Read How to Cook Artichokes in the Instant Pot or Stovetop Pressure Cooker if you prefer that method.

Making Dipping Sauce:

1. While artichokes cook whisk together the mayo, sour cream, and fresh-frozen lemon juice to make the dipping sauce. (Start with one tablespoon of lemon juice and taste to see if you want more.
2. The sauce can be made ahead and kept in the fridge for a few days.

Notes:

I used my fresh-frozen lemon juice for cooking the artichokes and for the dipping sauce.

This recipe inspired by Mom’s Artichokes, which are one of my best food memories from childhood.

All images and text ©Kalyn Denny for Kalyn's Kitchen.

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
Artichokes do have some carbs, but they aren’t eaten in huge amounts and they’re high in fiber, which makes them good for low-carb diets. Artichokes are also a great low-glycemic food, and even though mayo is a “limited” food on South Beach, when you eat this you aren’t eating the dipping sauce by the spoonful, so I would eat this for any phase of the South Beach Diet.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
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