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    Home > Recipes > Instant Pot

    Instant Pot Steamed Artichokes

    Published: Apr 12, 2020 · Modified: Mar 13, 2022 · by Jess Smith · Jump to Recipe · 3 Comments · This post may contain affiliate links.

    5 artichokes lying on a white table
    artichokes in an instant pot
    dipping an artichoke leaf into hollandaise sauce
    Instant Pot Steamed Artichoke on a white plate next to a bowl of hollandaise
    Artichokes and lemons in an instant pot
    instant pot steamed artichokes
    Instant Pot Steamed Artichokes

    instant pot steamed artichokes

    The tender, savory leaves of an artichoke make a great side dish or appetizer, especially when served with your favorite dipping sauce. Instant Pot Steamed Artichokes take a fraction of the time compared to steaming them on the stovetop. 

    If I had to choose a favorite food, it would probably be steamed artichokes. Since I was a teenager, this spiky, strange-looking vegetable was at the top of my request list for my birthday dinner each year. Now Frank makes them for me every April when they’re in season. We stand around the kitchen counter, dipping the tender artichokes leaves in rich hollandaise sauce and sighing over the goodness of it all.

    dipping steamed artichokes into hollandaise

    The one problem that has haunted us year after year is the unpredictable time for steaming these vegetables. Whole artichokes are easy to steam on the stovetop, but the cook time can vary dramatically. Fresh, smaller artichokes can steam fast but larger, older artichokes can take an hour or more! Many a year, we ate my birthday artichokes long after the rest of the meal was done and put away because those sneaky little veggies had to keep cooking. 

    But that’s not a problem we have anymore. Instant Pot to the rescue!

    The Instant Pot / pressure cooker takes steaming artichokes from a lengthy process with lots of lifting the lid to check in on the vegetables to a 10-30 minute, totally hands off proposition.

    5 whole artichokes lying on a white table

    Just prep the artichokes, load them in the Instant Pot, cover and cook. While the artichokes are steaming, whip up some hollandaise or garlic butter for dipping. 

    Here’s how to do it.

    How to Prep an Artichoke for Steaming

    If you’ve never prepped an artichoke it can feel intimidating. This is quite a strange vegetable. The good news is that, once you’ve done it, it will never feel intimidating again. 

    artichoke lying on a white table

    First, rinse the artichoke well, letting water run between the leaves.

    cleaning an artichoke under the faucet

    Next, place it on a cutting board and slice off the stem. You’ll want to slice off enough of the stem that it can sit upright.

    Then slice off the top of the artichoke to expose the layers of color on the inside of the vegetable. This will remove any spikes on the top of the leaves and will make the leaves easier to peel off later when you serve it.

    an artichoke with the top sliced off next to a knife on a white table

    Remove any remaining small, tough leaves on the outside of the artichoke. If any of the remaining leaves have thorns at the end, use kitchen shears to slice off the thorns. (Sometimes these thorns are removed before the artichokes are sold, so you may be able to skip this step.)

    trimming an artichoke on a white table with scissors

    That’s it - these artichokes are ready to be steamed!

    squeezing a lemon over artichokes in an instant pot

    artichokes and lemons in an instant pot

    How to Eat an Artichoke

    As intimidating as it can feel to prep a whole artichoke for the first time, it can feel equally as confusing to eat it. The most fun way is to enjoy it leaf-by-leaf.

    pulling a leaf off of a steamed artichoke in an instant pot

    Peel off the leaves, one at a time, and dip the tender lower portion of each leaf in sauce. Gently scrape the “meat” of that lower portion of the leaf off with your teeth. Discard the rest of the leaf.

    Instant Pot Steamed Artichoke on a white plate, next to a small white bowl of hollandaise sauce

    When you reach the middle of the artichoke, the leaves will get very soft and it will be difficult to peel them off. At this point, you’ll want to remove the choke and eat the last bit of the artichoke with a fork.

    Instant Pot Steamed Artichoke on white plate next to a bowl of hollandaise sauce

    This fuzzy center (“choke”) should NOT be eaten. See the photo below. The choke (top) should be discarded and the remaining tender base of the artichoke (bottom) is delicious to eat.

    the choke of a steamed artichoke on a white plate

    Best Sauces for Artichokes

    • Fresh Basil Pesto
    • Balsamic Vinaigrette
    • Hollandaise Sauce (recipe coming later this week!)
    • Sriracha Mayo
    • Garlic Butter
    • Ranch Dressing (or your other favorite creamy dressing)

    More Great Vegetable Sides

    • How to Steam a Whole Head of Cauliflower in the Instant Pot - A whole head of steamed cauliflower is great for slicing into cauliflower steaks, chopping into florets, or drizzling with sauce for a beautiful vegetarian dish.
    • Spicy Szechuan Green Beans - Spicy Szechuan Green Beans are inspired by many plates of a similar dish I had in China. These spicy, sweet, crunchy green beans hardly resemble any other green beans I’ve tried.
    • Honey-Roasted Carrots with Poppy Seeds - The crunch of poppy seeds over caramelized carrots is an indescribably great combination.
    • Sauteed Cabbage with Bacon - This cabbage, cooked until tender but still crisp, becomes silky and just a bit sweet. And with the crunch of crumbled bacon...amazing.

    Favorite Tools

    • 6-Quart Instant Pot Duo - This is the Instant Pot / pressure cooker I use to test all meals on this site. It easily makes enough to serve the 5 members of our family (3 are young kids). 
    Artichokes and lemons in an instant pot
    Print Recipe
    4.75 from 8 votes

    Instant Pot Steamed Artichokes

    The tender, savory leaves of an artichoke make a great side dish or appetizer, especially when served with your favorite dipping sauce. Steamed Artichokes in the Instant Pot take a fraction of the time compared to steaming them on the stovetop.
    Prep Time10 mins
    Cook Time24 mins
    Total Time34 mins
    Course: Side Dish
    Keyword: instant pot, steamed vegetable
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 50kcal
    Author: Jess Smith via Inquiring Chef
    Cost: $6.50

    Equipment

    • 6-quart Instant Pot / pressure cooker
    • Instant Pot Trivet (usually comes with the pressure cooker)

    Ingredients

    • 2 large Artichokes (see note)
    • 1 cup Water
    • 1 Lemon, halved
    • Dipping Sauce, for serving (like pesto, hollandaise, or garlic butter)

    Instructions

    • Prepare artichokes: Rinse and drain artichokes, being sure to rinse between the leaves. Slice off enough of the stem so that the artichokes can sit upright. Slice off the top of the artichokes to remove the thorns at the top of the leaves. (Note: Sometimes all thorns are removed before the artichokes are sold in stores, but if any remain after you sliced off the top, use kitchen shears to remove them) Remove and discard any of the small, tougher leaves near the base of the artichoke.
    • Add water to the bowl of an Instant Pot / pressure cooker.
    • Add the trivet that came with the machine.
    • Place the artichokes on top of the trivet, stem-side down.
    • Squeeze the juice from the lemons over top of the artichokes and then tuck the remaining lemon peels around the artichokes (the lemon peels will continue to flavor the artichokes as they cook).
    • Close and lock the lid.
    • Set the pressure valve to Sealing.
    • Cook on manual / high pressure, using the following timeframes as a guide (use the weight of the heaviest single artichoke as a guide):
      * 8 oz Artichoke - 10 minutes
      * 12 oz Artichoke - 14 minutes
      * 16 oz Artichoke - 18 minutes
    • At the end of the cook time, manually release the pressure.
    • Test one artichoke by peeling off an outer leaf. (The leaf should easily pull away. If it does, the artichokes are done. If not, leave the artichokes to the pressure cooker and cook on high pressure for an additional 3 to 5 minutes. Again, manually release pressure.)
    • Serve artichokes with dipping sauce of choice.

    Notes

    2 large artichokes (about 12 to 16 oz each) is a good amount to be shared by 4 people as a side dish. Alternatively, you can serve one artichoke per person, but aim to get smaller artichokes around 8 to 10 oz each. Try to get artichokes of a similar size so that they finish cooking at the same time, and use the guide in the recipe above to determine how long to steam / pressure cook the artichokes.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 50kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 80mg | Potassium: 349mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin C: 25mg | Calcium: 48mg | Iron: 1mg

    *This post contains affiliate links*

    Related

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    About Jess

    Hi! I'm Jess. I am the recipe creator and photographer behind the 900+ recipes you’ll find on Inquiring Chef. As a mom to three young kids and professional cook, my mission is to make every moment in the kitchen and around the table count. If you’re looking for easy, flavorful, family-approved recipes, you’ve come to the right place! Learn more about me here.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. john muriithi

      April 18, 2020 at 6:29 pm

      It looks delicious

      Reply
    2. Teresa

      May 11, 2021 at 9:17 am

      Do you cook the artichokes 10 minutes per artichoke or for two. For instance, if I have 2 12oz artichokes, do I cook them for 14 minutes or 28 minutes?
      Teresa

      Reply
      • Jess Smith

        May 12, 2021 at 12:08 pm

        Great question Teresa - we'll update the recipe to clarify. The cook time is based on the weight of the heaviest artichoke of the bunch, but won't change if you cook more than one. If the heaviest artichoke you have is 12 oz, use 14 minutes as a guide, even if there are several artichokes in the pot.

        Reply

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