14 Healthy + Delicious Sunchoke Recipes to Make You Cook Like a Foodie (2024)

FAQs

Are sunchokes healthier than potatoes? ›

Jerusalem artichokes are sweet, nutty, and potato-like, with even more health benefits then their root vegetable cousins. Moser says they're very high in vitamins, potassium, iron, and fiber. “They're really a very healthy vegetable,” she notes.

The second idea was to cook the artichokes in lemon juice before adding them to the pot. The suggestion comes from Kristan Lawson writing in Modern Farmer. This 'acid hydolysis' is said to convert the inulin (the indigestible carbohydrate in the tubers) to fructose and small amounts of glucose.

Like many root vegetables, sunchokes should be thoroughly washed and scrubbed with a vegetable brush before eating and cooking. A sunchoke's skin is edible, so you don't need to peel them, but sunchokes are often peeled prior to making dishes such as soups or purees to ensure a more uniform texture.

They contain as much iron as a 3-oz cut of meat, with no fat and very few calories, making them a great addition to any weight management diet plan or vegetarian diet.

Sunchokes enjoyed much popularity in Europe after their introduction, until they started developing a reputation for causing excessive amounts of flatulence. This actually has some basis in reality, as sunchokes contain a great deal of inulin, which does cause gas and bloating when eaten in excess.

He even went so far as to call it irresponsible for a chef to serve. The vegetable is made of a carbohydrate called inulin, he explained, instead of the tuber's typical starch, and inulin has an Ex-Lax-like effect on the human digestive system—we can't digest it naturally, so our gut bacteria go to town.

The bad thing about sunchokes? They contain inulin, which – when consumed raw – can lead to serious gas and bloating. As such, they've been unofficially titled “fartichokes”. While inulin sensitivity varies from person to person, it's best to avoid eating sunchokes raw altogether.

The blog goes on: “Modern science concurs — 'Boiling Jerusalem artichokes in an acid such as lemon juice or vinegar will hydrolyze the inulin to fructose and small amounts of glucose'.” The blogger subsequently boiled “quarter-inch-thick sunchoke slices for 15 minutes in just enough lemon juice to cover them.

These results suggest that heliangin derived from Jerusalem artichoke leaves could play a role in the prevention of inflammatory in macrophage and VECs, which might help to prevent atherosclerosis.

A simple dressing of olive oil, garlic. mustard, lemon juice, honey, and salt and pepper are combined with the sunchokes and Brussels sprouts, as well as baby salad greens, red pepper flakes, pine nuts, and parmesan cheese. Serve this light and lemony winter salad alongside your favorite protein.

How do you know if sunchokes have gone bad? ›

The best way to tell if sunchokes have gone bad is if they develop a foul odor or appearance. Mold will also start appearing as they begin to decay.

A member of the sunflower family, sunchokes — also called Jerusalem artichokes — are tubers that have no actual relation to artichokes, or Jerusalem for that matter, and are commonly grown in North America.

Sunchokes are also known as Jerusalem artichokes. As a member of the Sunflower family, they were one of the few native tubers of North America; Native Americans enjoyed eating sunchokes for centuries before the colonialists settled.

Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus), also known as sunchoke, is a perennial sunflower with edible rhizomes and tubers. They can be consumed raw in salads, pickled, or used to flavor meat stews.

“Sunchokes have a low glycemic index, which is why they are considered to be a great food choice for diabetics—they don't cause blood sugar to spike.

Sunchokes can often be substituted in recipes that call for potatoes and carrots. Chop them into 1-inch pieces with other root veggies, such as potatoes, beets, and sweet potatoes; drizzle with olive oil, thyme, and sea salt; and roast in the oven at 425°F for 25-35 minutes or until soft and golden.

Sweet potatoes are healthier than plain potatoes, but if you're going to choose the latter, seek out those with blue or purple flesh. The consumption of one boiled purple potato a day for six weeks was found to significantly decrease inflammation, something neither white nor yellow potatoes were able to accomplish.

In fact, sunchokes are packed with an important type of fiber called inulin, which is a prebiotic. “Inulin is a carbohydrate, but because your body can't digest it, it doesn't affect your blood sugar,” said Freuman. This characteristic gives the sunchoke its low glycemic effect.

Purple potatoes may be a better choice for blood sugar control than other potato varieties because of their high polyphenol content. This is because pigmented potatoes have been shown to have a lower effect on blood sugar levels after meals than yellow and white potatoes.