Sunchokes, also known as Jerusalem Artichokes, are a tasty vegetable that pack a punch. They can be very gassy. I knew that from previous experience, so I researched them before adding them to my roasted vegetables last night.
Sunchokes contain inulin – a type of carbohydrate that is a derivative of fructose. We don’t have the digestive enzymes for this, and foods that we can’t digest cause gas. There is nothing unhealthy about the gas – but in the case of sunchokes it can be pretty extreme and very uncomfortable.
The source I mention below says that sunchokes are “three times as farty as any bean”.
Sunchokes can be eaten raw, pickled, roasted or stewed and have a nutty flavor. I figured that cooking them would help reduce the gas problem, and that using a small amount would help. AND we took a probiotic (a pill with friendly bacteria like acidophilis) – which I find very helpful with digesting beans.
Well, it didn’t help. The one sunchoke that I added to our roasted winter vegetables still made for a miserable night.
Looking a little further, I found an interesting posting that offers a way to process the vegetable. Referencing the Curious Cook by Harold McGee, this writer says that if you slice the tubers and boil them for 15 minutes with cream of tarter or lemon juice, or bake them in a 200 degree F oven for 24 hours, it will convert the indigestible carbohydrate into fructose.
Storage also helps because over time the starches naturally convert to fructose. While there is a way, I’m not sure that I want these that much. What have you done that’s worked!
Note: it seems like some people are more affected by these vegetables than others. Also, inulin is often added to foods as a source of fiber (indigestible carbohydrate) or to support friendly bacteria. These are small amounts that we can generally tolerate just fine. With the sunchoke it is a matter of volume!
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[...] inulin is so difficult to digest (sunchokes pack more farty-fart power than your average bean) cooks should slice and boil them for 15 minutes with cream of tarter or lemon juice or bake in an oven at 200 [...]
I unwittingly ate a whole pound of these yesterday, for lunch. Peeled, parboiled, then sauteed with onions. Took a beano pill first, which did absolutely nothing. Result was hours and hours of painful intestinal gas and bloating (12+). Never again.
I suspect that some of us are more susceptible. If you can tolerate all that inulin, they really are good for you. But they don’t work for me either! Kathy
Never heard of this forum before, should have, couldn’t stop farting the whole night last night!
Ate a BUNCH of these in a salad last night. Lightly sauteed with olive oil and some white whine vinegar, neither of which helped lessen the gas that could kill a small child. Wish I saw this BEFORE.
oh brother…..i am a middle school teacher…..just ate a whole choke for the first time…..raw….then read this…..hope the air has cleared before school tomorrow
I knew t was my sliced suchoke snack. Man it was horrible
Like many here…I wish I read this before I ate lunch today. Just got a bunch of sunchokes from my CSA and thought salads were a great choice…
I’m going to wring Dr. Oz’s neck! Based on his recommendation of how good these are for you, (good source of iron, good for diabetics and for those wanting to lose weight) I searched for months til I found some. Just served some raw tonight with hummus dip. Two small knobs sliced and eaten by three people. A few hours later, I couldn’t figure out what in the world was causing all the wind turbulence. Now, i see. Oh brother! And I have a whole pack left. Come here Dr. Oz, I”ve got a tasty smoothy for you.
They are healthy, and inulin is frequently added to foods. Worth watching labels for for those of us that are sensitive to it!
Ate a whole bunch of these one day, baked with oil. Got them from the farm where I used to work and was given no warning. I was just told to use them like potatoes. I was so miserable the whole night. I remember I had friends in town that night and kept having to awkwardly sneak away. And I had to share a bed with a friend. Ugh…..stay away!
Someday I will try preparing them properly, though, because they certainly are prolific and require minimal effort to maintain in the garden.
Sunchokes are tasty and healthy. Emulate Ben Franklin and fart proudly!
Just dug up the results of the 1 pound I planted–I have 75 pounds of sunchokes for us to eat up!
Great informative article. I dig sunchokes! I harvested a gallon bag today. A couple gallons last week. I am spacing out the harvest to wait for more freezing weather which should increase the sugars, and I suppose that will reduce the inulin.
I have noticed the gas but it is not too terrible. I often take gluten-ease or other digestive enzymes. I am not sure if either contain an enzyme that addresses inulin. Do you know Miss Nichols. Thanks much.
The gas won’t stop me from eating them but I might have to time my consumption of them around certain events, lol. I get lots of healthy fiber in other foods and maybe that is helping me in this regard.
Any tips on naturally deterring the mealworms or whatever they are from boring holes in the tubers? D/E mixed into the soil bed, cedar oil added to the natural fertilizers, etc.? I do throw brassica leaves down on my garden for nematodes, but about one in ten of my tubers have been munched on by these white and tan worms. Thanks again.
Some of us are probably more sensitive to sunchokes – they are a good and tasty food for anyone who tolerates them without too much gas! Of things that could help, I would think probiotics would be the most likely. The problem is that inulin can’t be fully digested, so as it hangs around during digestion it is fermented by bacteria. Enzymes might be helpful, but probiotics would be my best bet because they can help keep the gas-producing types of bacteria in check.
Sorry – I don’t know enough about gardening to offer any advice. I have a tiny garden myself in a very small back yard.
Ha ha. This is all so hilarious. I made a Jamie Oliver recipe last night – a gratin that was a little bit crunchy and oh so delicious. The bloating began before we were done eating but. In pure volume I bet I could have filled a handful of balloons. It was painful and musical. I was pretty sold on the idea that we didn’t cook the meat long enough on the BBQ last night but on a lark I typed “sunchoke fart” into google. Mystery solved. Wish I had known the techniques for mitigating gaseousness. I seriously wonder why recipes don’t discuss the care required…
I think age must be key. I’ve had sunchokes before with no memorable problem… Last night we shared a pound of roasted (like oven fries) -delicious!- and were both miserable all night. These were very plump and fresh, moist like an apple inside, from the market. The ones I remember eating before always looked slightly dry and starting to shrink from age. -Any idea how many weeks / months they need of storage before they are safe to eat?
Interesting! Sorry, I don’t know about optimal storage. Does anyone else?
I’ve been up and down all night bc of these little stinkers. They’re delicious, but I can’t sleep! I’m so glad you posted this; I thought I was going to die of fart.
I bought these sunchokes (aka Jerusalem artichokes) b/c they really DO taste a lot like artichoke hearts. As you know, fresh artichoke hearts are messy and I usually feel wasteful throwing away all the leaves, which I love to eat as well. It’s a lot of work to get to the artichoke heart.
So I bought Jerusalem artichokes for their flavor and b/c I figured they’d be much less work and much less waste.
WELL, that part was true. They are less work to COOK, but they sure did make up for it w/ unrelenting painful gas. I was so sensitive to it I almost thought I had food poisoning, but I vaguely recalled some warning in a recipe. I prepared them the way I would prepare artichoke hearts, sauteed in garlic/lemon butter. And in fairness, they tasted great.
I am prepared to try them again, with the new anti-gas ways listed above. ALSO I took Gas X AFTER I ate the sunchokes. I should have taken some beano & Gas X (=simethicone) before AND after. Yes taking them after did help, but not enough. Not nearly enough. Probably the worst case I’ve ever had…and worse I was not alone!
I haven’t experience farting with eating sunchokes but I have had diarrhea twice several hours eating roasted sunchokes. Is this an expected reaction from sunchokes? I’m so surprised since I have a pretty strong gut and not many things make me go like that.