5 Ingredients or Fewer

Carciofi alla Giudia – Roman Jewish-Style Artichokes

by:
April 26, 2014
4.8
4 Ratings
Carciofi alla Giudia – Roman Jewish-Style Artichokes
  • Serves 4
Author Notes

A specialty of the city's famous Jewish cuisine, carciofi alla giudia is one of the Eternal City's favorite seasonal dishes. It's an age-old preparation, like the rest of this cuisine -- a wonderful combination of two cultures over centuries, made up largely of well-guarded recipes that have passed on from generation to generation with a great respect for the traditions.

The best place to enjoy these, of course, is in the heart of Rome's old Jewish ghetto, where the preparation of carciofi alla giudia (along with a host of other delicious deep fried things) is preserved in the restaurants of this Roman quarter. But it is also very easy to replicate at home. In Roman markets during peak artichoke season, you can find amongst the piles of whole artichokes, already prepared ones, ready simply to be dipped into bubbling hot olive oil.

Artichokes may take a little bit of time and care to prepare, but this preparation is even simpler than most and once that's done, the recipe is too easy.

Using large, round globe artichokes grown in Lazio (known as Romanesco artichokes, they have IGP or Protected Geographical Indication status, which means this particular variety is strictly tied to the area in which it has been historically and traditionally produced), the tough, outer leaves are first removed, then the artichokes are trimmed until they look like roses. Then they are deep fried, whole, at first quite gently, just rolling about until cooked. Then they are removed, cooled down and then plunged head first into bubbling hot olive oil until they look like sunburnt sunflowers.

The trick to getting the unique combination of crisp leaves – nutty and deep golden brown – and a meltingly tender interior comes from frying twice.

Choose large, round globe artichokes that still have a bit of stem on them. —Emiko

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 4 whole globe artichokes
  • 2 lemons, cut in half
  • Olive oil for frying
  • Salt and pepper
Directions
  1. Prepare the artichokes by first peeling off the outer leaves that are tough and hard, beginning from the base, removing the leaves until you see they become more tender. Once you've done this, with a small, sharp knife, begin trimming the top points of the artichoke's remaining leaves, again working from the base up. When you reach halfway or so, cut the top half (or third, depending on how tender the artichokes are) of the artichoke completely off. Rub the artichokes all over with half a lemon.
  2. Now trim the stem; chop the bottom off, leaving about 2 to 3 inches of stem and then trim it, peeling away the outer layer of the stem and the bottom of the artichoke so you have just the tender inner part of the stem attached. Place the artichokes in a bowl with the juice of 1 lemon until they are ready for frying. Drain completely and pat dry with kitchen paper before frying.
  3. Heat about 3 inches of olive oil in a saucepan over low-medium heat and fry the artichokes gently (if you have a candy thermometer, this should be about 300º F or 150º C) for about 10 minutes, prodding them with a fork every now and then, letting them roll around to cook thoroughly.
  4. Remove and drain the artichokes on paper towels. When cool enough to handle (you can also pop them into the freezer for a couple minutes to do this quickly), help open up the artichoke carefully by teasing some of the leaves out and flattening the artichoke a little.
  5. Turning the heat up higher (this time about 350ºF or 180ºC), deep fry the artichokes, head down (tongs are handy for this) for a couple of minutes or until crisp and a deep, deep golden brown. Drain on paper towels then serve while still hot, sprinkled with sea salt and some pepper.
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8 Reviews

Lori M.
Lori M. May 18, 2015
No, you do not eat the fuzzy choke. It is easily peeled away. The rest is divine!
Lomanda...
 
Asaracoglu
Asaracoglu May 14, 2014
How do you eat these? What do you do with the choke on the inside?
 
Emiko
Emiko May 14, 2014
You eat the whole thing! The inside is incredibly soft and tender and the leaves are crisp like potato chips - I like to cut into it, eat the middle first and work my way around to the leaves last (as I save my favourite bits to last) but there are no hard and fast rules.
 
cucina D.
cucina D. May 5, 2014
made this dish yesterday... wonderful reminder of my visits to rome. my famiglia loved them, but since I don't fry foods too often, I made sure to cook these outside for less mess and fuss :) grazie tante!
 
Emiko
Emiko May 14, 2014
Oh good idea, though I find this quite contained as far as frying foods goes! Glad they were enjoyed ;)
 
cucina D.
cucina D. May 1, 2014
i love these and eating them in Rome and our hometown of Sora was always a treat during their season. I too agree that you must use copious amounts of olive oil or they will never achieve the texture and flavor you want. Thanks for sharing this beautiful recipe (I also use the top of the leaves that are trimmed off and saute them or I blanch until tender and dress them in olive oil and red vinegar and salt)
 
Elizabeth M.
Elizabeth M. April 30, 2014
I love eating these when they are in season in Rome! One big difference between cooking these at home, versus how they make them in a Roman restaurant is the use of a deep fryer. I've found, after much experimentation, that I get closest to the perfectly cooked artichoke when I use enough olive oil to completely float the globes. If you have a deep fryer, all the better. But the more oil you use the better. This means that the oil will stay hot even when you add the artichokes, thus resulting in a less greasy finished product. Hope that makes sense?
 
Emiko
Emiko April 30, 2014
GREAT tip, Elizabeth! Thanks for mentioning this, yes, I agree - plenty of oil is a must! I unfortunately don't have a deep fryer (or fortunately - I think if I had one I'd use it ALL the time!) but have found making these in a deep saucepan works a treat.