Chef Hillary Sterling of Vic’s in New York City shared her recipe for oven-fried artichokes which deliver all of the crispness of deep-fried with a fraction of the mess. Sterling likes to pair these with her Lemon-Caper Aioli. Baby artichokes can be found in well-stocked grocery stores; look for spring onions in Latin supermarkets.
How to Make It
Stir together wine, 3 cups water, olive oil, thyme, bay leaves, and 1 tablespoon salt in a large saucepan. Working with 1 artichoke at a time, trim and discard top 1/2 inch from artichoke. Remove and discard dark outer leaves. Peel stem using a vegetable peeler or paring knife. Cut trimmed artichoke in half lengthwise; scoop out and discard fuzzy thistle. Place halved artichoke in wine mixture. Repeat process with remaining artichokes.
Preheat oven to 500°F. Cover saucepan with parchment paper; bring wine mixture to a boil over medium-high. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer until artichokes are just tender, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand 15 minutes. Drain artichokes; pat dry, and set aside.
Preheat oven to 500°F. Cover saucepan with parchment paper; bring wine mixture to a boil over medium-high. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer until artichokes are just tender, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand 15 minutes. Drain artichokes; pat dry, and set aside.
Place artichokes on second prepared baking sheet. Add remaining 1/4 cup canola oil, remaining 2 teaspoons salt, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper; toss to coat. Arrange artichokes, cut sides up, on baking sheet. Bake at 500°F until browned, about 13 minutes. Flip artichokes; bake until crispy and very brown, about 8 minutes.
Toss together onions, artichokes, and lemon juice in a large bowl. Sprinkle with parsley. Serve with aioli.