Soma Sengupta Passover Recipes: Carciofi Alla Giudia (Fried Arti - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 lemon, juiced
8 globe artichokes
6 cups peanut oil or 6 cups olives, 0il (for frying)
2 tablespoons fine sea salt (to taste)
4 lemon wedges (to garnish)

Preparation

Fill a large bowl with water and add lemon juice. Set aside.
Using a sharp paring knife, shave off the tough outer leaves of artichokes until you reach the tender pale green or yellow leaves. Cut off at least an inch of the thorny top. Trim the stem near the heart, peeling off the outer green fiber and leaving about 2 inches of stem if possible. Using a spoon, scoop out the furry center of the choke. If you wish to serve the artichoke as finger food, cut into 4 wedges. Otherwise, leave whole. As you trim. immediately put each artichoke in the lemon water to prevent browning.
Heat oil to 280 degrees.
While oil is heating, remove the artichokes from the water and dry thoroughly. Salt the chokes, and beat them against one another so that the leaves start to open.
Fry the artichokes until cooked through, about 10-15 minutes, adjusting heat to maintain a gentle bubble. You should be able to easily pierce the center with a fork. Turn larger artichokes frequently for even cooking. Reserve oil.
Using a slotted spoon or spider, transfer artichokes to a paper towel-lined plate. Let stand until cool enough to handle. Then, using your hands, gently pull open each artichoke \"bud\" so that it resembles an open flower. You don't need to do this if you are using wedges.
Shortly before serving, heat reserved oil to 375 degrees. Fry artichokes until crisp, 2-5 minutes. Sprinkle with sea salt & serve with the lemon wedges.