13th November 2015
There are not many reasons to rejoice at the advent of winter but when I see the first knobbly little Jerusalem artichokes in the shops I am somewhat cheered. Every year I vow to freeze a batch or two because they are one of the few vegetables which are impossible to source out of season. This probably doesn’t affect most consumers but it is perennial problem when you are trying to write winter recipes in the middle of July for magazines and books. Jerusalem artichokes are a pain to peel which is why I tend to just scrub them really well with a clean scourer-unless they are very earthy in which case you have no alternative. If you have never tried them I have a duty of care to warn of the side effects (wind- and lots of it) but they are so delicious I think it is a small price to pay. I have never tested whether eating them every day one might become immune to this. Probably not. Nor have I noticed that different cooking methods alleviate this problem so there is no avoidance. Throughout the winter I shall be filling the pages with recipes using Jerusalem artichokes. In the meantime try the incredibly simple recipe in the vegetable section- roasted Jerusalem artichokes with new potatoes, parsley and lemon.