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Sunchokes
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Posted by
arwen2 5b Ontario (
My Page) on
Wed, Oct 23, 13 at 19:28
| I wasn't planning on harvesting these yet, but strong winds toppled and uprooted one of my plants. I have never grown these before and was amazed to get about 20 lbs of tubers from just this one plant. What do I do with them now? The two of us can't possibly eat them all within the 3 week fresh storage time. Is there any other way to preserve or store them? I have 6 more plants, which means over 100lbs of them out there. Lurking. |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Sunchokes
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| I keep them inside a plastic bag in my unheated garage. They'll last all winter. Inside a bag in the vegetable crisper drawer of a fridge works well too. Rodney |
RE: Sunchokes
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| Just because the upper plant toppled, doesn't mean the chokes are bad--you cut the flower stalk off at this time of year anyway (though I do realize if it uprooted many, that's what you have). So, you don't have to dig them all at once--dig a few when the ground is soft enough, and leave the rest there. They'll just keep growing. Some people also prefer the taste when spring harvested (before they start sprouting) because freezing can sweeten them slightly. I'm 5b like you, and the freeze doesn't bother them. Google can show you many recipes; but basically, you can do anything with it that you can with a potato. Our fam favs ended up being roasted sunchokes with a lavender breading, and fried sunchoke chips. |
RE: Sunchokes
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| You can also pickle them. But you have to be patient. |
RE: Sunchokes
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| Thanks balloon flower. I am new to these and all suggestions are very welcome! I will cut down the stalks tomorrow. Another plant has partially uprooted and I will cover up those exposed tubers with dirt. Sounds like they are a bit like parsnips. I am looking forward to tasting them tomorrow....I found a slow cooker recipe with brisket, carrots, onions and Sunchokes that I am going to try. |
RE: Sunchokes
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| Seysonn, pickling is interesting. Do you mean by fermenting? |
RE: Sunchokes
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Yes, Pickling by fermenting.
They make the crunchiest pickles that there is. Another point: You can keep them in the ground. Fine, But it you cut the stalk or it is killed by frost, I don't think that tuber can grow. They need photosynthesis, don't they?
So if you want them grow, keep the stalks till frost. |
RE: Sunchokes
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| They have definitely been frosted. I would hate to think that they could grow more! Enough is enough! I couldn't believe the amount of tubers from one plant. |
RE: Sunchokes
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| Seysonn-- Yes, here the sunflowers are frosted and dead, and I assumed that in Ontario it was the same. They can be cut and the tubers survive just fine until spring. Can't get rid of them!!! Arwen--One thing I forgot to mention--start slowly on eating them. For some people, they can cause some uncomfortable gastrointestinal issues if quantities are consumed when you're not used to them. Just a note, and they have so many great health benefits. Also, look for soup recipes. |
RE: Sunchokes
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| Ballonflower ... I accepted the fact that they will survive the frost and can stay in ground. . I just doubted that they can grow any bigger without foliage. |
RE: Sunchokes
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| This was my first year growing them. Above ground they look like they did well. Not all grew of the 12 or 15 that I planted, but we've had a LOT of rain this summer, so I didn't expect any to do anything. I'm waiting on the first frost to set in before I start digging. Blooms just faded a couple weeks ago. Now there are seed heads and those beautiful purple stems. Looking forward to digging some soon. I tried one in the spring before I planted them and I did experience a little tummy trouble. So I'll be going easy on them. Haven't had anybody at work interested in them yet, so they may be all mine. And I'm sure there will be some I don't find, so there will be some there from now on. :-) Maybe I can sell them on Craig's List... :-) |
RE: Sunchokes
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| Chrisb ...try Beano with the Sunchokes. It worked for us and they were delicious! No one around here is familiar with them and I haven't had any takers either. Too bad. I had a better return on these than potatoes and sweets. |
RE: Sunchokes
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| I raise 'Stampede', an early variety with a flower that smells like chocolate. My favorite way to eat them is raw, like the crunchy round slices in Chinese restaurants. I would be interested in a fermenting/pickling recipe. I have never cooked them in any manner that I liked. The food bank here enjoys when I give them some. Their customers all seem to like them. Maybe I will try some sunchokes juiced. I start my day with juiced vegetables, like a V7 (no tomato). And, yes, they are best eaten after some frost, and are edible until spring. If you cover the bed now with deep straw or leaves, you can harvest during winter. Cut stems down before mulching. Best to cut stalks AFTER they have died back. |
RE: Sunchokes
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| Here's a dumb question. After reading this thread, I became curious about what these are and googled. They look a lot like what I have out by the barn. I just figured they were wild sunflowers and they are pretty weedy for us. Do sunchokes grow wild like that or probably they are indeed a wild sunflower weed? |
RE: Sunchokes
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| gardengalrn- It's possible that they are sunchokes. Sunchokes are native to North America and they do grow wild. One way to tell is to pull one up. If it has tubers, it's a sunchoke. If not, then it's a sunflower. Rodney |
RE: Sunchokes
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| A sunchoke IS a sunflower. It is a perennial sunflower with an edible tuber that reproduces prolifically, and so there is less emphasis on seed. We do not see the large seed head on sunchoke. The flowers tend to be smaller, and bloom later. I like the variety 'Stampede' because it flowers early enough to bloom before frost kills the plant. The flavor of the tuber is enhanced by the cold/frost. After the plant has frozen, the tubers are delicious. Worthy of note: an annual sunflower (what van Gogh painted) throws seed elsewhere. Birds carry the seed elsewhere. The tubers of sunchoke fairly reliably stay right where they are. So if it looks like a sunchoke (smaller flower, tiny or no seed) and always grows in the same place, then it is most likely a sunchoke (AKA Jerusalem artichoke). Jerusalem artichoke is a misnomer. Girasol (Italian for sunflower or something like follows the sun) became mispronounced. You can look up the etymology but be certain that sunchoke is a sunflower, not an artichoke. It is native to North America as theforgottenone1013 just said. Inulin is one of the interesting nutritional components of sunchoke. Inulin is a precursor to insulin. Diabetics enjoy eating sunchokes. It helps to regulate blood sugar. |
RE: Sunchokes
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| Garden Gal--agreed that you may have sunchokes, because as has been stated, it's a variety of sunflower that produces the tubers. If you dig at the base of one, it will be very obvious whether you find the tubers or not. If they haven't been dug recently, there will be tons of them (at the community garden where we have some, we dug nearly a wheelbarrow full from an area 2' x 12', and that was only after one year. Googling probably found you a pic of the tuber, but they look like ginger root to me. |
RE: Sunchokes
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They look a lot like what I have out by the barn.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ It is EASY to find out: Just pull one out and check, |
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