Artichokes, some might argue, are a natural fit for Mediterranean-inspired cuisine. Where you absolutely will not find them would be in any iteration of Chinese food. So, in my city of Changzhou, they are simply not all that commonly stocked in supermarkets -- even the higher end ones frequented by the members of the foriegn community. However, as one can see they are still pretty cheap to order off of Taobao.
Recently, I had a craving to just make a salad out of them. COVID-19 was one of the big reasons. Ever since the ZERO policy had be abandoned in my area, infection rates have been skyrocketing. I came down with it recently, and while my case was/is very mild, it still felt like I had been smashed in the head with a shovel. Anything I could do -- healthily -- to get over having the coronavirus, I was going to do. That means getting a lot of sleep and eating a lot of stuff with vitamin C in it. So, here is the resulting salad I made.
Typically, most of the salads I make start with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. In this case, though, I chopped four cloves of garlic and the white end of a leek. Anytime I am adding garlic, leek, or onions to anything, I like to let it sit for a while and marinate.
From there, it's two cans of artichokes in water, and pulling apart each of them -- leaves and hearts. Then, it's chopping two large tomatoes, and liberally mixing them together.
Sea salt and black pepper from a grinder to season to taste.
And there you go, something simple and good. This version is the most stripped down of this type of salad. A fancier variation I have done in the past have also included pine nuts and avocado. I am not going to be silly enough to say this cured my COVID. But, as a simple and healthy comfort food while feeling like crap, I'll take this any time.
