Steamed Artichokes (with Artichoke Dipping Sauce)

My Mom’s Steamed Artichokes (with Artichoke Dipping Sauce) brings back memories of my mother making artichokes every spring! And my mom’s cooking method that cuts each artichoke in half makes the fresh artichokes more budget-friendly!

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This recipe for Steamed Artichokes (with Artichoke Dipping Sauce) is a favorite childhood memory for me! My mother made artichokes for our family every spring, and from a young age I was such a fan of Mom’s artichokes and the artichoke dipping sauce she served them with! It wasn’t until I was an adult that I realized some people didn’t eat fresh artichokes, and had no idea how to cook them.

These Steamed Artichokes and the easy Artichoke Dipping Sauce is only one of the memories that makes me miss my amazing mother. She was cooking for a family of 12 (!), which is one reason she always cut each artichoke in half to make it serve two people. Now many years later, I still love this way of preparing the artichokes that makes them easier to eat.

Mom steamed the artichokes in a big pot, and I’ll show you how to cook them in a vegetable steamer. My mom made artichokes once or twice every spring as a side dish for a special occasion. So today I’m featuring this recipe as a Friday Favorites pick to remind you about artichokes as an option for Easter!

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe with ingredient amounts.)

• whole artichokes
• water
• fresh-squeezed lemon juice; I used my fresh-frozen lemon juice
• mayo
• sour cream

Why are my mother’s steamed artichokes more budget friendly?

My mother always cut the raw artichokes in half and cut out the “choke” part before she steamed them. This definitely made them more kid-friendly, and easier to eat for everyone. But it wasn’t until years later I realized she also did that because she was cooking for 12 people and that method created perfect portion control. Each serving was half of an artichoke, which is probably enough for most people when it’s part of a special meal.

More about cooking artichokes:

This post shares my mom’s method for steaming artichokes, which is the way I’ve done it for years. But you can also cook artichokes in the Instant Pot if you’re a fan of using that! 

More about My Mom’s Artichoke Dipping Sauce:

I hope you try my mom’s Artichoke Dipping Sauce that has just mayo, sour cream, and lemon juice! This recipe has a lower-carb version of my mom’s original sauce that was made with Miracle Whip. I’m NOT a Miracle Whip fan, but you can use that to replace the mayo if you don’t care  about more carbs. I think this easy three-ingredient dipping sauce is perfect to serve with artichokes!

More ideas for Artichoke Dipping Sauce:

My mother served artichokes with the lemony sauce featured in this post, and in my family we call that Mom’s Artichoke Dipping Sauce! And that sauce tastes great whether the artichokes are hot or cold. For hot Artichokes, melted butter is also delicious for a low-carb option. Steamed fresh artichokes will also taste fantastic with Remoulade Sauce, Lemon-Mustard Vinaigrette, Basil Vinaigrette, Roasted Red Pepper Dip, or Tzatziki Sauce.

Are Artichokes low in Carbs?

Artichokes do have some carbs, but they’re super high in fiber, so they’re considered a low-carb vegetable. If you serve half the artichoke like my mother did, each serving only has 5 net carbs!

How to Prepare Artichokes for Steaming:

1. I always cut my artichokes in half the way my mother did!
2. I choose artichokes with the longest stem I can find, since the stems are tasty.
3. I trim the stem and even peel them if there are some discolored parts.
4. Then I cut the entire  artichoke plus stem in half.
5. The very center contains fuzz and inedible parts called the “choke”. Use a sharp knife and cut along the bottom of the choke (where it meets the artichoke heart) then grab the prickly part of the leaves and pull the choke out.
6. This is the only part of the cooking process that’s at all difficult.

How to Steam the Artichokes and make Artichoke Dipping Sauce:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

1. I like to use kitchen shears and cut off the sharp ends; but it’s optional and my mother certainly never did that.
2. While you trim the artichokes, put several inches of water into a stovetop vegetable steamer and let it come to a boil. (I like to add a few tablespoons of my fresh-frozen lemon juice, to keep the artichokes from turning brown, but my mother never did that.)
3. When the water comes to a boil, put the artichokes in, cut side down.
4. Put the lid on the steamer and time for 25 minutes; then check (by piercing the artichoke heart with a fork) to be sure they’re done.
5. While artichokes cook combine mayo, sour cream, and fresh-frozen lemon juice to make the dipping sauce.
6. Let artichokes cool slightly and then eat with Mom’s Artichoke Dipping Sauce.
7. You can also cook artichokes in the Instant Pot if you prefer that method.

More tasty ideas for artichokes:

Check out Amazing Recipes with Artichokes to see my favorite artichoke recipes. Or use Artichoke Recipes to see all the artichoke recipes on this site. 

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Yield: 3 artichokes

Steamed Artichokes (with Artichoke Dipping Sauce)

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Steamed Artichokes (with Artichoke Dipping Sauce) is a recipe that makes me miss my amazing Mother, and fresh artichokes are a treat I loved from the time I was a small child! I switched out the Miracle Whip for mayo to make the Artichoke Dipping Sauce lower in carbs, but make it the way you prefer.

Ingredients

Artichoke Ingredients:

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• 3  whole artichokes, stem trimmed, cut in half, and choke cut out (see notes)
• water
• 2 T lemon juice (see notes)

Artichoke Dipping Sauce Ingredients:

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• 1/2 cup mayo
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 T lemon juice (see notes)

Instructions

Preparing Artichokes for Steaming:

1. I choose artichokes with the longest stem I can find, since the stems are tasty.
2. Trim the stem and peel away any discolored parts.
3. I cut the entire  artichoke plus stem in half lengthwise.
4. Then use a sharp knife and cut along the bottom of the choke (where it meets the artichoke heart.) Then grab the prickly part of the leaves and pull the choke out. (This is the only part of the cooking process that is at all difficult.)
5. I like to use kitchen shears (affiliate link) and cut off the sharp ends of the leaves; but it's optional.

Steaming the Artichokes:

1. While you're trimming the artichokes bring, put several inches of water into a stovetop vegetable steamer (affiliate link) and let it come to a boil. (I like to add a few tablespoons of my fresh-frozen lemon juice, to keep the artichokes from turning brown, but my mother never used that.)
2. When the water comes to a boil, put the artichokes in, cut side down. Put the lid on the steamer and time for 25 minutes.Then check (by piercing the artichoke heart with a fork) to be sure they are done.
3. Read How to Cook Instant Pot Artichokes if you prefer that method.

Making Artichoke Dipping Sauce:

1. While artichokes cook whisk together mayo, sour cream, and fresh-frozen lemon juice to make the dipping sauce. (Start with one tablespoon of lemon juice and taste to see if you want more.
2. The sauce can be made ahead and kept in the fridge for a few days.

Notes

I used my fresh-frozen lemon juice for cooking the artichokes and for the dipping sauce.

Start with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice in the sauce; then taste and see if you want to add more.

This recipe makes enough sauce for three artichokes if you can fit that many into your steamer. Artichokes do have some carbs, but they're very high in fiber so the net carbs are low.

This recipe inspired by my mom's method for cooking artichokes and her simple but perfect dipping sauce, one of my best food memories from childhood.

Nutrition Information

Yield

6

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 177Total Fat 16gSaturated Fat 3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 12gCholesterol 13mgSodium 159mgCarbohydrates 8gFiber 3gSugar 1gProtein 2g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

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Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
Steamed Artichokes do have some carbs, but they’re high in fiber, which makes them good for low-carb and Keto diets. With the cut-in-half artichokes and low-carb dipping sauce here, each serving is only 5 net carbs. Artichokes are also great for the original South Beach. (Even though mayo is a “limited” food on South Beach Diet, when you eat the artichokes you aren’t eating much of the artichoke dipping sauce. I would eat this for any phase of South Beach.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Side Dishes to see more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical notes for this Recipe:
This recipe for steamed artichokes with my mom’s artichoke dipping sauce was first posted in 2006, probably with photos that would make me cringe if I saw them now! It was last updated with more information in 2026.