TABELIA

AUTHENTIC RECIPE

Carciofi alla GiudiaJewish-Style Fried Artichokes

Jewish-Style Fried Artichokes
Difficulty★★★☆☆ Prep20 min Cook30 min servings4

Fried artichokes from Rome’s Jewish quarter. Frying 2 times makes the outside crisp and the center meltingly tender. One of Rome’s oldest vegetable dishes.

Recipe developed and reviewed by the Tabelia Editorial TeamUpdated
100/ 100

AUTHENTICITY SCORE

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Ingredients (4 servings)

  • Romanesco artichokes4
  • Sunflower oil for frying500 ml
  • Lemon2
  • Salt1 pinch
  • Black pepper1 pinch

Method

Preparation

1

Trim the artichokes

  • 1 Squeeze 1 lemon into a bowl of cold water.
  • 2 Peel off 10–12 tough outer artichoke leaves and cut off the top 2 cm of the leaves with a knife.
  • 3 Snap off the stem, leaving 5 cm, and peel it with a vegetable peeler.
2

Remove the chokes and soak in lemon water

  • 1 Cut the artichokes lengthways into 4 quarters and scoop out the central fuzzy choke with a spoon.
  • 2 Immediately place in the lemon water to prevent discoloration.
  • 3 Soak for at least 10 minutes.

First frying (low temperature)

3

Fry the artichokes at low temperature

  • 1 Pour oil into a deep-frying pan and heat to a low temperature of 140°C.
  • 2 Thoroughly dry the artichokes, add to the oil and fry for 8–10 minutes.
  • 3 When soft enough for cooking chopsticks to slide in easily, lift out and drain.
4

Open into petal shapes

  • 1 Gently press the removed artichokes with your palm to open the leaves like petals.
  • 2 Raise the oil temperature to 180°C.

Second frying (high temperature)

5

Fry again at high temperature until crisp

  • 1 Fry again in oil at 180°C for 2–3 minutes.
  • 2 When the outer leaves are crisp and golden brown, lift out and drain on paper towels.

Finishing

6

Season and serve hot

  • 1 While hot, sprinkle with salt and black pepper and serve immediately with lemon wedges.
  • 2 The leaves soften over time, so serving at the right moment is essential.
A view of Roma, Ghetto
Roma, GhettoItaly Photo: Palickap · CC BY-SA 4.0 (resized; display cropped)

About this dish

In Rome’s former Jewish quarter near the Tiber, carciofi alla giudia appear each spring as a specialty at shops and eateries. Born from the food culture of the Jewish community that has lived in Rome for so long, the dish carries the city’s memories.

It has been passed down as a preparation in which artichokes are fried in olive oil without pork fat, within Jewish dietary rules. Its flower-like appearance is familiar to tourists, but it began as a seasonal dish rooted in everyday life in a small part of Rome.

In spring, markets in Lazio fill with mammola artichokes. While carciofi alla romana is a homely braise, this fried preparation continues to be eaten as a symbol of Rome’s Jewish quarter.

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