The distance to the Roman markets from the fields of Ladispoli is a short one, so during this season bundles of freshly cut, long-stemmed artichokes arrive daily. To walk through any of these neighborhood markets is to experience grand opera on a culinary level. Theatricality dominates the atmosphere—every vendor is a director, a set designer, a promoter enticing the audience to watch their production, to buy their act. Like the Romans themselves, artichokes are a show-off vegetable, so they’re perfectly cast as the star of this show. What a show it is! Maria Leonetti has owned and operated her stall at my favorite market in the working class section of Testaccio for twenty years. When I asked her permission to photograph her artfully arranged carciofi and would she also be so kind as to appear in the picture along side them, she didn’t reach for comb and lipstick. Instead, she rushed to her star performers, yanking them into position, carefully lining them up, pinching their cheeks and fluffing their hair—the Steven Spielberg of il mercato di Testaccio tweaking their best possible performance for the camera.
An important component of Italian cooking is freshness, therefore most of what is purchased in the afternoon will be consumed by that same evening. On the rare occasion that this doesn’t happen—for example, if Rome and Milan are head to head in a crucial soccer match—those artichokes can be kept standing in a vase of cool water for a day or two. Being a member of the thistle family, they are after all basically a flower. In most cases, however, very little time lapses between cutting at the fields and consuming at the table.
The presentation and preparation of food in Italy is serious business, no less important than papal edicts, ratio of dollar to euro, or Prada’s new “it” bag. Although infinite variations for artichoke recipes abound, the quintessentially dueling classics in Rome are unquestionably Carciofi alla Giudia and Carciofi alla Romana.
Carciofi alla romana
Both preparations are begun by placing cleaned and trimmed whole artichokes in water and lemon juice. Carciofi alla Giudia (artichokes in the Jewish style) are simply dropped head first into hot olive oil, pressed until nicely browned, and then turned right side up until tender. Add salt and pepper and the crispy delectables are ready for the plate. Carciofi alla Romana (artichokes Roman style) are braised instead of fried. Forty minutes upside-down in a covered pan with water, olive oil, garlic, mint and parsley and the result is a wonderfully tender antipasto or side dish than can be enjoyed either cold or hot.
