If you love artichokes, you have to try cardoons. But be warned: Their green leaves with silvery highlights require special treatment. Not because they’re thorny – but because they feature a hardened texture, making them especially difficult to cook.
But since they are softer after the first frost of the winter, now is definitely the best time to try them. The (Italian) cardoon varieties we suggest – which we call ‘cardo’ (pl. cardi) here – are the cardo gobbo del Monferrato, the cardo Mariano, cardo di Bologna and the delicious variety from Chieri. Regardless of the variety, you’ll still have to remove the outer leaves to get to the softer center for the best results.
To reach a pleasantly tender texture, we suggest boiling the cardoons for at least a couple of hours in acidulated water (with lemon or apple cider vinegar). Then cook them according to the recipe’s instructions. The reward for your patience in preparing them will be all the vitamins and minerals present in the vegetable – including (but not limited to) potassium, iron, copper, sodium, magnesium, zinc and calcium. Not to mention the presence of both vitamins B and C – especially important during wintertime.
So now that we know cardoons a little better (and why they’re good for you!), all that’s left is cooking them in a few recipes so you can decide on a favorite.