Sunchokes a la restaurant

Whenever I cook with lots of oil and high heat, I call it restaurant-style.

Ingredients, double or more for guests

• 1 large sunchoke
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 onion
• 1 carrot, sliced into long, thin pieces
• 1 teaspoon mustard seed, ground or whole
• 1/8 cup tart cherry juice (or other sour juice or wine)
• 2 tablespoons tarragon
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• 1 teaspoon thyme

Preparation

1. Clean and peel and clean the sunchoke. It's a dirty root, so to clean means to give it a bath. It's easier if you break it up into round pieces first.
2. Steam the sunchoke in a pressure cooker, with an inch of water, for 10-20 minutes, or until tender.
3. Meanwhile, fry the onions and carrots in half the olive oil, on medium to high heat until they just start to carmelize.
4. Add ground/whole mustard seed and stir on high for another two minutes.
5. Add cherry juice, reducing it to a syrup on high heat; then simmer on low under a lid until the sunchoke is ready.
6. Remove sunchoke pieces, split them into bite-sized pieces, and add them and the herbs to the frying pan.
7. Fry and stir on medium without a lid until everything is coated and there's no extra liquid.

Serve hot with a salad, a protein dish, and a glass of lemonade.