Jerusalem Artichokes - AKA Sunchokes
We have been growing these plants for several years now, in our community garden. They are easy to mistake for sunflowers, by the fall they have tall - eight feet high, stalks, with lovely yellow flowers. The tuber is the part that is eaten. and the longer you wait for harvesting - till just before the deep freeze, the better the tubers are. In the fall of 2010, we harvested sixty pounds of tubers from the few tubers that escaped from us the previous year.
"THE ARTISANAL GARDEN"
Though I have enjoyed growing them and eating them, I have not taken the time to do the through research for them. However, I have just found a wonderful article written by a local farmer, with all the information needed to dispel the myths and complaints about these roots!
Here are some excerpts from the
"THE ARTISANAL GARDEN"
column of the
Winter 2010/11 issue of Edible Toronto Magazine
"Jerusalem Artichokes" By David Cohlmeyer
excerpts in bold):
These are native plants, originally called Sun Roots.
One of North America’s contributions to the world’s compendium of ingredients is the Jerusalem artichoke. Native Americans cultivated what they called sunroots long before the Europeans arrived.
-
The main complaint I have heard, is that it causes - stomach problems - flatulence. Folks run into this problem once, and say "I can't eat them ever again" - Not True, (not necessarily)
Tubers are formed by plants to store carbohydrates through the winter. The carbohydrate within Jerusalem artichoke tubers is inulin rather than the more common starch. This is processed differently by individuals’ digestive systems, so for some people this may create flatulence. You should therefore take it easy the first time you try them. Generally, just enjoying Jerusalem artichokes more frequently soon eliminates the problem.
-
They will take over your whole garden. - With careful planning this does not need to be true.
Before you start growing any Jerusalem artichokes, please make sure this is really something you want in your garden. As with mint and horseradish, once you plant them they are nearly impossible to get rid of. For larger size and easier harvesting, we grow ours in a new plot each year. (Then we need to spend two years of meticulous mechanical cultivation to get rid of them!) If you still wish to grow them, make sure you plant your Jerusalem artichokes in an isolated part of your garden.
-
And here is one fact that i didn't know about at all:
Jerusalem artichokes are considered to be well suited for diabetics (and for weight loss).
-
How to cook them - at first I just tried to cook them the way I would cook potatoes, but now I have started to use them more as an individual vegetable ...
-
Since they do not have as much protein as potatoes, however, they can suddenly turn disturbingly mushy, so vigilantly monitor the cooking – particularly when boiling them. They might be absolutely wonderful with six minutes of boiling and then abruptly turn into a dreary mush in the next minute. Jerusalem artichokes can be enjoyed raw, pickled, steamed, roasted, scalloped, gratinéed, in pancakes, puréed, in soups, or deep fried as chips.
David Cohlmeyer is the founder of Cookstown Greens
which grows and delivers premium vegetables and salad greens to many of Toronto’s most critically acclaimed restaurants, hotels and caterers.