# what is this vegetable? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 21, 2013, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846 "2013-10-21T18:27:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![IceQube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@IceQube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IceQube)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/1 "2013-10-21T18:27:38Z")
It’s the light coloured stuff. [http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/22/a9ubujav.jpg](http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/22/a9ubujav.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/2 "2013-10-21T18:28:27Z")
Artichoke hearts. ---
**Author:** ![Butterscotch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dc4da7/32.png) [@Butterscotch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Butterscotch)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/3 "2013-10-21T18:28:36Z")
Looks like artichoke to me! ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/4 "2013-10-21T18:30:06Z")
Definitely artichoke hearts. Looks marinated or jarred. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/5 "2013-10-21T18:31:31Z")
It’s overrated, is what it is. ---
**Author:** ![IceQube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@IceQube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IceQube)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/6 "2013-10-21T18:54:54Z")
What’s it’s nutritional significance? ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/7 "2013-10-21T19:06:13Z")
“…good source of folate, dietary fiber, and vitamins C and K. Artichokes are also packed with antioxidants; they’re number 7 on the USDA’s top 20 antioxidant-rich foods list.” Although I’m having a hard time finding info on the heart versus the rest of the bud ([this is what a whole artichoke looks like](http://www.simplyrecipes.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/artichoke.jpg). What you find marinated in a jar is just the “core”) IMHO they’re one of those things that are good at holding on to the flavors you marinate them in, and have a fun mouth feel if you’re into that mouth feel. Like a portabello mushroom (although those are probably even more flavorful than artichoke hearts). ---
**Author:** ![IceQube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@IceQube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IceQube)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/8 "2013-10-21T19:26:55Z")
It’s somewhat sour…is that proper? I guess it means it was marinated or jarred right. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/9 "2013-10-21T20:26:17Z")
Not sour on their own. Ever had [heart of palm](https://www.google.com/search?q=heart+of+palm&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=t41lUrjBDcibygHZ8YHICw&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1600&bih=719)? It’s similar in flavor. If the ones you tasted were sour they were likely marinated. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/10 "2013-10-21T20:39:59Z")
The cheap kind of canned artichoke hearts can be slightly sour (as can be the cheap kinds of hearts of Palm). The marinated kind would be strongly flavored with oil/ vinegar and spices. If you can’t see visible spice bits, they probably aren’t marinated. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/11 "2013-10-21T20:46:33Z")
Probably lightly pickled. I love them. ---
**Author:** ![QuarkChild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c5a1d2/32.png) [@QuarkChild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuarkChild)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-vegetable/671846/12 "2013-10-21T21:51:57Z")
According to the book Eating on the Wild Side, artichokes (even canned ones) are among the healthiest things you can eat. Apparently they still have many of the phytonutrients of their wild ancestors (unlike many other commercial vegetables, which have had some of the nutrients unintentionally bred out of them.) I love artichoke hearts. You can eat them with pasta or pizza, grill them…yum.