When do you harvest Jerusalem 'chokes?

I want to try pickling Jerusalem artichokes this year, but I need to know when I can pick 'em. I noticed when I yanked up the uhhhhh..."exuberant" seedlings (sheesh, do they ever spread!) this spring they were pretty skinny roots. The photos I've seen are of rounder/lumpier tubers, so I'm guessing they aren't ready yet...any hints/clues on when/how to harvest?

When I grew them I'd just yank a few out and look at them. They were bigger later in the summer (here about end of July/August).

Never pickled them, we just ate them either raw in salads or cooked (boiled) like taters. Very good!

If they don't get much size on them I'd add some potassium to the soil...that'll help them out next yr but probably not this yr.

Thanks, 'Shoe! I'm sure we'll eat them roasted and boiled, too - I wouldn't have thought to pickle them, but reading Lawrence's book on the Market Bulletins, she included a recipe for pickled 'chokes (said it was the only way worth eating them, lolol!) Anyway, it sent me on a recipe expedition - I figure I'll try a small batch this summer, and if we like 'em I'll have another idea for Christmas gifts next year.

Sheesh...you might be making me wanna start growing them again! Pickled, eh? (Friend of mine sells pickled garlic, and it's delish!) As for me I like to make what I call Portugese Pickled Onions each yr...wonder if that would be an easy recipe for the 'chokes. (No canning/processing...just refridge.)

Let us know how they come out...I'm salivating!

I'll be sure to let you know if they're worth eating, let alone growing, hehehe. (In one of the search results, there was an offer for pickled ramps...made me think of y'all who live in "ramp country"...)

But back to the 'chokes, I'm also wondering if they're suitable for those on low-carb diets, since they're supposed to be a "safe" starch-substitute for diabetics? Anybody know?

Edited.

This message was edited May 21, 2005 11:51 AM

Is there anyway to peel them easily? It seems like when I peel them I cut more off then I'm left with.

Terry,

I don't know what you mean by "safe-starch substitute for diabetics." But there are more than 26 grams of carbohydrates in one cup (150 grams) of sliced, raw 'choke roots. This compares to about 23.5 grams for white potatoes; hardly a significant difference.

I was referring to the carbs being in the form of inulin, which is considered a "safer" form of carbohydrates for diabetics.

Yep...that's what I remember about why I started growing them also (worked w/some diabetic folks at the time). Inulin vs insulin.

Bitty, I'll see if I've ever typed up the pickled onions recipe and post it here. (If not I'll come back in when it's too hot to work outside and write it down.)

Kathy...a brush with long bristles on it does a great job cleaning them. If they're good and clean I've just eaten them as is, didn't peel them. A potato peeler works good tho if you want to peel them. (I think peeling them is the worse part of them.)

Terry,

You must be talking Type I diabeties. Friend Wife has Type II, and total carbs are the important thing with her, not their source.

We'll, I'm oversimplifying, of course. But you get what I mean.

Back to Terry's original question

"I'm also wondering if they're suitable for those on low-carb diets, since they're supposed to be a "safe" starch-substitute for diabetics? Anybody know?"

We're back onto Inulin again, unlike potatoes that have very digestable carbs which convert into glucose, Inulin is only partailly digestable and converts into fructose, a much slower releasing sugar than glucose. This means that the calories in high inulin veg tend to be lower than those in other high carbohydate foods. Inulin is also found in many 'low-fat' processed foods as a sort of fat substitute.

The diabetes/inulin thing is something the experts are going to have to answer. In my understanding the liver can convert fructose into glucose, so we get back to sqaure one again with the sugars. Some diabetics report a reduced use of insulin when eating high inulin veg but I'd rather all that came from the proper researchers than from the keyboard of Baa.

A word of warning on Jerusalem Artichokes, if you're not used to eating them, don't go all out J'choke eating. They aren't nearly as digestable as potatoes and can cause a quite nasty stomach ache and will more than likely cause the dreaded Wind problem *G*

This message was edited Saturday, Jun 28th 7:21 AM

Another side tid bit from my online research of JA's. They are (apparently) one of the few foods digestible by humans that support beneficial bacteria growth in the colon. Bifidus and Acidophilus in particular....

And Baa is right on the "winds".....beware

Chris

Thanks for the warnings :) But could it be much worse than eating too many fresh pickles, which my family refers to as "Bellyachers"??? (*grin*)