Braised Baby Artichokes
on Jun 27, 2025
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Tender baby artichokes are gently braised with sweet leeks and briny capers for a vibrant Mediterranean-inspired side dish full of layered flavor.
If you’ve ever walked past a pile of baby artichokes at the market and thought, “What on earth would I do with those?” — you’re not alone. But once you learn how to braise them, you’ll wonder why they haven’t been on the regular rotation all along. This easy braised baby artichoke recipe has a nice Mediterranean flavor, thanks to the leeks, lemon, and capers. It’s a perfect spring vegetable side dish.
Baby artichokes are tender, way less fussy to eat than their grown-up artichoke siblings, and they soak up flavor extremely well. Braised in olive oil, garlic, broth, and lemon, they turn meltingly soft and irresistibly savory. Serve them warm, room temp, on their own, or as part of a pasta recipe, grain bowl, or antipasti platter. Also, think about roughly chopping them and serving them on crostini or bruschetta.
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How to Prepare Baby Artichokes for Cooking
How much of a baby artichoke needs to be trimmed and tossed depends on the size and age of the artichoke. It’s painful to throw out too much of the little orbs, but a tough baby artichoke is just no fun to eat. Braising is a great way to cook baby artichokes; the slow cooking in liquid helps make them soft and easy to eat.
- Start by filling a bowl with cold water and a nice amount of lemon juice (probably two lemons’ worth for 12-20 baby artichokes) in enough water to cover the artichokes.
- Then pull off any thick outer leaves until you get to the paler, more tender leaves beneath. The leaves will soften in the cooking process, so it takes a little bit of trial and error to discover which outer leaves will get tender, and which should have hit the cutting room floor. You can always pull off any tough outer leaves after the artichokes have been cooked.
- Use a heavy, sharp knife to cut off the top 1/4 to 1/2 inch of the artichoke leaves. Use a paring knife to trim off the bottom of the stem, and also to trim off any jagged or tough or undesirable tips of the remaining leaves.
- Immediately submerge the artichokes in the lemon water. If the recipe calls for halving the artichokes, you can do that before submerging them, or right before cooking.
Kitchen Smarts
You can keep the artichokes in the lemon water in the fridge for a day if you like, which is a nice way to get the pesky part of prepping baby artichokes out of the way.
Variations
- Add some pitted black olives, such as kalamata, to the braised artichoke toward the end of the cooking time.
- Skip the Parmesan cheese at the end for a vegan baby artichoke dish.
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Braised Baby Artichokes with Leeks and Capers {Vegetarian}
Ingredients
- 2 lemons (cut in half)
- 12 baby artichokes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 leeks (trimmed, sliced and cleaned; white and light green parts only)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
- 1 ½ cups less-sodium vegetable broth
- 1 tablespoon drained capers
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
- Fresjly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
Instructions
- Fill a medium-sized bowl with cold water and squeeze the juice of the lemon into the water. Toss in the squeezed lemon rinds.
- Trim the tops and the bottoms off the baby artichokes, pull off any tougher outer leaves, and cut them in half lengthwise. Toss them into the lemon water as you prep them (this will keep them from turning brown).
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the leeks for 4 minutes, until they start to soften, seasoning them with salt and pepper.
- Add the artichoke hearts, transferring them to the pan with a slotted spoon, and sauté for 1 minute, then add the broth and 1/2 cup of the lemon water, as well as the capers. Cover the pot, bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then lower the heat to medium-low, and continue to simmer, covered, until the artichoke hearts are tender and can be pierced easily with a sharp knife, about 20 minutes. The liquid should be almost gone at this point; if there is still some left, uncover the pot and allow the artichokes to simmer for another few minutes until the liquid is almost evaporated. Taste and add salt and pepper as desired.
- Transfer the braised artichokes to a serving dish and sprinkle with the parsley and the Parmesan, if using. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Looks great! Can’t wait to try it! I will post pics
Can I make this in advance and freeze it?
I think yes, though I definitely think the artichoke hearts might get a little softer in the freezing and reheating…if you doit, please let me know!