Sunflower Family (Asteraceae): Jerusalem Artichoke, Sunchoke or Sunroot

“The Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus) is a large, perennial sunflower native to the Great Plains of North America. It is closely related to the common sunflower (H. annuus) that grows along roadsides and vacant fields throughout the western United States. It has been cultivated by native Americans for centuries, and was introduced into Europe in the early 1600s. Like true potatoes, it produces edible tubers at the ends of underground stems called rhizomes. The tubers contain "eyes" or buds and are technically modified stems rather than roots. [The original name of "sunchoke" was applied to a hybrid between the Jerusalem artichoke and the common sunflower.] The common name has nothing to do with Jerusalem or the artichoke, although these names may have been corrupted from the Italian name for the plant "girasole articiocco." "Girasole" refers to the way the flowers turn to face the sun, and "articiocco" refers to artichoke. The tubers are eaten raw in salads, steamed, fried, baked and mashed. Raw tubers are very crisp and sweet, with a taste more like water chestnuts than potatoes. According to the Wayne's Word staff, they do not taste like artichokes. Jerusalem artichokes provide an abundant source of nutritious, tasty tubers in poor soils with very little care.” – Vegetables Underground

“...[U]nlike most starchy vegetables, the principal storage carbohydrate in sunchokes immediately after harvest is inulin (not to be confused with insulin) rather than starch. When consumed the inulin is converted in the digestive tract to fructose rather than glucose, which can be tolerated by diabetics.” – Growing Jerusalem Artichokes

• Complete nutritional information
• Growing Jerusalem Artichokes
• Jerusalem Artichoke Caper, The - includes preparations and methods of consuming
• Jerusalem Artichoke (Sunchoke) Recipes, at About.com
• Vegetables Underground, the source of this page.
• Wikipedia article