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Zeytinyağlı enginar
Aegean artichoke hearts braised with peas, carrot and dill in olive oil
In spring, when globe artichokes pile up on stalls in İzmir and Urla, market sellers trim them on the spot into pale hearts kept in lemon water, and families take them home to make zeytinyağlı enginar. The hearts are braised cup-side up with small onions, carrots, potato and peas in olive oil and lemon, then served cold with a shower of dill, often as the first course of a spring dinner. The classic mistake is leaving trimmed artichokes in the air: they turn grey within minutes. Chef's tip: rub every cut surface with lemon as you go and drop the hearts straight into water with lemon juice and a spoonful of flour, which keeps them pale and cream-coloured.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the artichokes
For the braise
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Fill a bowl with cold water, squeeze in half of 1 lemons and whisk in 1 tbsp rice flour. Keep it next to the board.
Step 2: Snap the dark outer leaves off each of 4 globe artichokes until you reach pale yellow ones. Cut off the top two-thirds, trim the stalk and pare the dark green skin from the base. Scoop out the hairy choke with a teaspoon, rub with the other half lemon and drop into the lemon water at once. If you skip this the hearts go grey.
20 minStep 3: Heat ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil in a wide pan over a medium-low heat. Add 8 small onions or shallots, 1 carrot and 1 potato and cook gently for 5 minutes, until the onions are shiny and just softening.
5 minStep 4: Drain the hearts and sit them cup-side up in the pan. Fill the cups with the vegetables and 3 ½ oz peas, sprinkle with 1 tsp sugar and 1 tsp salt, and pour in 1 ¼ cups hot water and the juice from the remaining 1 lemons.
Step 5: Lay a circle of baking paper on top, cover and simmer over a low heat for 20–25 minutes, until a knife slides easily into the base of a heart and the carrots are tender.
25 minStep 6: Leave to cool in the pan. Arrange on a plate, spoon the juices over and finish with ⅔ oz fresh dill. Serve at room temperature or chilled.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 210 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 20 g
- Fat
- 13 g
- Fibre
- 9 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does zeytinyağlı enginar take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of lemons?
- Lime, or 2 tbsp bottled lemon juice per lemon (no zest from bottled juice).
- What can I use instead of small onions or shallots?
- Half an onion per 2 shallots.
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