Grilled Artichokes with Lemon Sauce
on Apr 03, 2023, Updated Jun 26, 2025
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Smoky and tender, grilling is one of the best ways to prepare artichokes during the warmer months, especially with homemade lemon sauce.
Grilled artichokes are one of the most unexpectedly irresistible summer sides. When properly prepped, steamed, and finished on the grill, they turn smoky, tender, and packed with flavor, especially when paired with a bright and tangy lemon dipping sauce.
If you’ve ever wondered how to grill artichokes without drying them out or what sauce goes best with grilled artichokes, this easy step-by-step recipe has you covered. Perfect for cookouts, appetizers, or a light veggie-forward dinner, these grilled artichokes with lemon caper sauce bring a Mediterranean twist to your summer table. And they look as good as they taste!
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Served at room temperature or warm, they are a great addition to an outdoor lunch or dinner menu. If they are taking center stage, you’ll want at least two halves per person. If they are one of a few sides, one half per person should be fine.
Serve the artichokes with Grilled Ribeye Steaks, Grilled Salmon, or any of your favorite grilled mains. For another side, try Quinoa Salad or Grilled Asparagus with Vinaigrette.
What's In This Post?
- How to Keep Cut Artichokes From Turning Brown
- How to Prepare Artichokes for Grilling
- How to Grill Artichokes
- Lemon Caper Sauce
- How to Eat Grilled Artichokes
- Dipping Sauces for Grilled Artichokes
- What to Serve With Grilled Artichokes
- Grilled Artichokes with Lemon Caper Dipping Sauce Recipe
- More Grilled Sides
How to Keep Cut Artichokes From Turning Brown
First of all, don’t make yourself too crazy about this. The artichokes are going to brown up all over when they are grilled, so in this particular cooking method, it’s not so important to stop the browning. However, once you cut an artichoke, the oxidation (or browning) starts pretty immediately. So if you have a cut lemon at the ready, you can rub it over all of the cut surfaces to slow down the browning.
How to Prepare Artichokes for Grilling
Preparing artichokes for grilling is a bit of a pain in the butt; there’s no getting around it. You have to trim the top and the bottom, snip off the spiky tips of the leaves, cut them in half, and scoop out the prickly choke right above the heart.
- Cut the top 1/2 inch from the artichokes. Trim the bottom 1/2 inch from the stems.
- Use kitchen shears or scissors to snip the pointy tips of the leaves off.
- With a large, sharp knife, carefully slice the artichokes in half lengthwise, through the heart and the stem. Use a spoon to scrape out the thistle-y choke (the prickly, hairy part that sits on top of the heart). As soon as you finish preparing each artichoke, rub all of the exposed cut sides with one of the lemon halves, which will prevent browning.
How to Grill Artichokes
- Steam the artichokes.
Artichokes are very dense, and it’s very hard to get larger artichokes to become tender when cooking them only on the grill over direct heat. However, the bottom of the leaves and the heart will be completely tender if you cook them on the stove first.
The best way to get tender yet smoky artichokes is to steam them until they are basically tender, then finish them on the grill. You get those lovely grill marks, and there will be that appealing smoky flavor from the live fire.
I prefer steaming them to boiling so they don’t get waterlogged, but you can do either. You can cook the artichokes a day or two ahead of grilling them and just keep them in a sealed container in the fridge.
- Grill one side: Heat the grill to medium. Brush the artichokes with olive oil and lightly salt them. Place the artichokes, cut side down, on the grill. Grill for 3 to 4 minutes, until you have nice grill marks on the bottom sides.
- Grill the other side: Flip the artichokes with tongs and grill for another 3 to 4 minutes until there are grill marks on the other side and a sharp knife easily slides into the artichokes.
- Serve the artichokes with the lemon sauce, if using.
Lemon Caper Sauce
The creamy lemon sauce that accompanies these artichoke hearts is so easy to pull together. It’s optional, but it’s quick to make and really adds great flavor to this dish.
The lemon sauce contains sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, fresh lemon juice, olive oil, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Some minced fresh herbs are also a nice addition — I love tarragon with this, but you can use oregano, marjoram, or thyme. Please try to use fresh lemon juice in this dip: you are zesting a lemon anyway!
You could also serve the grilled artichokes with a lemon butter or even just some plain melted butter. Aioli is another lovely pairing for this grilled artichoke recipe.
How to Eat Grilled Artichokes
The very outermost leaves will be a bit browned from the grilling, and those might be a little less tender. Pull the leaves from the artichoke. Dip the bottom of each leaf in the sauce (if using). Place the bottom part between your teeth and use your teeth to scrape off the artichoke flesh from the bottom of each leaf. The smallest leaves in the very center may be tender enough to eat entirely, or at least more of those more delicate leaves will be edible.
After you have removed and eaten the leaves, trim off any hard bits from the tender heart and the stem if it has become overly browned. Then eat the whole heart.
Dipping Sauces for Grilled Artichokes
If you want to trade the lemon sauce in for a different sauce, try one of these:
What to Serve With Grilled Artichokes
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Grilled Artichokes with Lemon Caper Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
For the Lemon Sauce (optional)
- 3 tablespoons sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh tarragon (optional)
- ½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
For the Artichokes
- 4 globe artichokes
- 1 lemon (halved)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (approximately, for brushing)
- Kosher salt (to taste)
To Serve (optional)
- Minced parsley
- Lemon wedges
Instructions
Make the Lemon Sauce, if using:
- In a small bowl, stir together the sour cream, lemon juice, olive oil, tarragon, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to use (the sauce can be made up to a day ahead of time).
Prep and Steam the Artichokes:
- Using a large sharp knife, cut the top 1/2 inch from the artichokes. Trim the bottom 1/2 inch from the stems. Use kitchen shears to snip the pointy tips of the leaves off. With a large sharp knife, carefully slice the artichokes in half lengthwise, through the heart and the stem. Use a spoon to scrape out the thistle-y choke (the prickly hairy part that sits on top of the heart). As soon as you finish preparing each artichoke, rub all of the exposed cut sides with one of the lemon halves, which will prevent browning.
- In a large pot, bring 1 inch of salted water to a boil. Place the artichokes in the pot and cover the pot. Allow the water to return to a simmer and steam the artichokes for about 15 to 20 minutes until fairly tender — a sharp knife should slide fairly easily through the stem, but they should not be too soft. Remove the artichokes from the pot and gently squeeze out any excess water with tongs. Or wait until they are cool enough to handle and gently squeeze out any excess water using your hands.
Grill and Serve:
- Heat the grill to medium. Brush the artichokes with olive oil and lightly salt them. Place the artichokes cut side down on the grill. Grill for 3 to 4 minutes, until you have nice grill marks on the bottom sides. Flip the artichoke with tongs, and grill for another 3 to 4 minutes until there are grill marks on the other sides, and until a sharp knife slides easily slides into the artichokes. Remove from the grill, and place cut sides up on a serving platter
- Serve the artichokes with a sprinkle of fresh parsley and the lemon wedges. Serve the lemon sauce on the side.
Notes
Nutrition
Yes, you can. You can grill artichokes up to 3 days ahead of time, and store them in an airtight container in the fridge. Bring to room temperature before serving. You can also rewarm them on the grill. Or grill them early in the day and allow them to sit at room temperature for several hours before serving.
