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Sunchokes 101

A sunchoke is also known as a Jerusalem artichoke, although it does not look, taste or is even prepared like you would a regular artichoke.

That's because a tan-coloured, bumpy sunchoke, like a potato, is actually a root vegetable - a tuber to be exact.

Sunchokes have a slightly sweet, nutty flavour and can be eaten raw. Slice, dice or cut into sticks and use them in cold preparations, such as salads or salsas.

Sunchokes, like other root vegetables, can also be cooked, by techniques such as stir-frying, roasting, boiling and mashing, using in soup or thinly slicing and frying them into chips great for dipping.

A sunchoke's skin is edible, so if you scrub it very well and remove any eyes, as you would with some types of potatoes, you could use it that way. However, for dishes that require a smooth texture, such a mashed sunchokes or a creamy soup, you will want to peel them first.

Give them a try! The water chestnuts in our Coconut Thai Curry Chicken Thighs recipe could be replaced with about 3/4 cup of sunchokes, sliced the same size.