I have no beef with pototaes and they are deservedly a Thanksgiving side staple. But if you want to try another mashed root that’s a bit quirky and delicious and perfectly in season … try sunchokes!
(Mangalitsa pork with sunchoke puree, roasted chantarelle mushroom and horseradish mustard)
What’s a Choke
A sunchoke is a gnarly and unevenly shaped tuber vegetable (tubers have nutrient storage vehicles allowing them to winterize, e.g., potatoes). They are harvested around November in North America, and like their name suggests they are members of the sunflower plant family. At first sight you could mistake one for a ginger root. Sunchokes are commonly called Jersualam artichokes – which they are not – though they have a somewhat similar taste to artichokes.
(cabbage & sunchokes)
Spirited Shavings
Topinambur – that is what we called them in Europe. I can remember different preparations like in France, we’d take a truffle slicer and shave sunchokes raw over salads. Sunchokes are a great companion to truffle preparations with a lovely nutty taste and a crunchy texture. Warning, do not consume to much of it raw – they give an expressive flatulent reaction.
Let’s not forget that in Germany they make “Topi” from sunchokes which is a spirit which probably can be described as firewater.
You Say Potato I Say Choke
Chokes are an ideal substitute for potatoes if you want to avoid starchy food (diabetics for example). Sunchokes have inulin (a polysaccharide) which is easy to digest. A golden brown syrup is made out of sunchokes which is sweeter than sugar and commonly sold in health food stores.
Recipe for Sunchoke Mashies (with almond milk)
(recipe yields enough for four portions when served with your turkey)
8 cups sunchokes (2-4-inches long)
2 gloves garlic
3 tablespoons vegetable oil such as canola or gape seed oil
1 tablespoon Kosher-style salt
10 grindings black pepper corn
2 pinches cayenne
1 cup almond milk (recipe page xxx)
1. Peel sunchokes with a vegetable peeler then cut (8 cups peeled sunchokes cut 1-inch long). Peel garlic then slice (1/8-inch thick).
2. In a pot (2-quart sized) heat vegetable oil on low heat setting then add cut sunchokes, garlic, salt, black pepper and cayenne. Cook mixture for 35 minutes covered with a lid or until soft when pierced with a knife then add almond milk (1 cup unsweetend almond milk) and continue to cook for five more minutes.
3. Transfer cooked sunchokes into a kitchen processor then process mixture to a tmash/puree. Serve as you would mashed potatoes.
(sunchoke puree with truffle honey)
(sunchoke soup with toasted pumpkin seeds)
Soup’s On
Here is my recipe for sunchoke soup. It is definatly one of my favorite vegetables for soup making.
(recipe yields four soup portions)
1. Rinse sunchokes with water and scrub clean then cut with a knife (no need to peel, about 8 cups chokes sliced 1/8-inch thick).
2. Peel onion and garlic then cut (1/8-inch cubes).
3. Heat vegetable oil in a pot (1-gallon sized) then combine cut sunchokes, cut onion and garlic, salt, pepper, cayenne and nutmeg then cook on medium heat setting for 15-20 minutes or until sunchokes are soft, stirring once in a while with a spoon.
4. Combine vegetable broth (4 cups) and water (2 cups) with cooked sunchokes then bring to boil and continue to simmer on low heat setting (20 minutes).
5. Transfer cooked sunchoke mixture into a blender with a ladle (reserve about two cups of sunchoke cooking liquid). Process sunchoke mixture until it has a smooth consistency (add reserved sunchoke cooking liquid, depending on your preferred consistency). Adjust seasoning with salt and fresh pepper.
Chef Tip: Drizzle some Austrian pumpkin seed oil over the sunchoke soup before serving.
