"pavane" > wrote in message
...
> Someone on alt.food.diabetic just asked about microwaving
> artichokes. As I had recently figured this one out I replied and
> then realized that I haven't seen much about this here on rfc,
> so this is my response to her, not cross-posted but nicely recopied
> just for you:
>
> "I just started doing this. Works beautifully, too.
>
> "Find a container that will hold the chokes standing upright, you may
> have to trim off the top of the leaves and bottom bit of the stem. Now
> is the time to snip off the sharp ends, if you do that sort of thing.
>
> "Rinse the chokes, stand either upright or upside down in container.
> I haven't found any difference in the cooking but the upside down
> method makes them easier to remove and no surprise pockets of
> hot water lurk in the recesses.
>
> "You don't need to drain the artichokes, just put them into the container.
> Add about 1/2 inch of water and a nice slice of lemon or a small glug
> of vinegar, about the same as you would do if cooking them stovetop.
> (You can actually add flavorings now, too, such as herbs, spices and
> so forth. I'm a purist though.)
>
> "Cover the container and microwave anywhere from 4 minutes per artichoke
> to 12 for really big ones.

It's fine if all one wants is one or two but for say a half dozen or more I
don't want to wait an hour or more... I honestly see no advantage to nuking
over stovetop. Whenever I cook artichokes I make it a point to serve them
with pasta, then I cook the chokes with the pasta water; start the chokes
first in cold water then add the pasta, pull the chokes out when done and
finish cooking the pasta. My stove will bring a 3/4 full 12 quart pot of
water with chokes to the boil in ten minutes. I don't cook chokes often but
whenever I do I cook at least a dozen, I like lots of extras because I enjoy
them cold more than hot.