A-Z Guide to Edible Flowers
Anise Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)
Not related to anise, this Mint-family member does have a vaguely licorice taste to both the flowers and the leaves. The flowers grow as a pinkish spike on three-foot perennial plants. This herb has a long history as a medicinal tea.
Preparing Anise Hyssop
Pull the flowers off the spike and use fresh or dry. Dried petals can be steeped for a soothing tea. Fresh petals can decorate a salad, and are especially good if sautéed in butter and used as a dressing for a fish filet.
Borage (Borago officinalis)
These cheerful, bright blue flowers have a slight cucumber flavor. And make a fantastic garnish for poached salmon, seafood or egg salads, and they are wonderful for incorporating into a breakfast omelets, French toast, or topping a spring holiday cake.
Preparing Borage Flowers.
Absolutely easy. Gently pull the flowers off the stem; you will get only the petals, with the green base remaining on the plant.
Calendula (Calendula officinalis)
A relative of the marigold, calendulas have bright orange or yellow petals and a warm, slightly sharp or bitter flavor. The petals have a heavy substance, and hold their own when chopped and included in omelets, soups or stews.
Preparing Calendula Flowers
As with other members of the daisy family, clip only the colored parts of the petals as the white or green parts will be too bitter. Calendula can be used fresh, or dried and stored in glass jars. The flavor marries well with potatoes, cheeses, and egg dishes.
Clover (Trifolium pratense)
The common red clover appears in lawns coast to coast, and its benefits include adding nitrogen naturally to soils, as well as providing food for bees (Clover Honey, anyone?). If you nibble on the blossoms you’ll find they taste a bit sweet. The leaves are also edible but not quite as tasty.
Preparing Clover Flowers
The soft pink flower of the clover is actually a bunch of smaller florets. It can be cooked whole or broken into florets first.
The best use of clover is to add it to soups, to add a bit of crunch and sweetness.
Daylily (Hemerocallis species)
The unopened flowers of this roadside escapee (Hemerocallis fulva) is a popular vegetable in China, and in Asian markets you can often find dried daylily buds to cook with. Fresh buds are of course superior and can be added to stir-fries or battered and fried as you might fry up okra. The flavor is similar, kind of greenish, and the texture is firm and crunchy.
How to Prepare Daylily Flowers
While the opened flowers are edible, the unopened buds are used in cuisine. Pick them on the day you plan to use them, and blanch them by immersing in boiling water for 2-3 minutes, and then remove them and plunge them into a waiting bowl of ice water. Dry on paper towels and use them whole in stir-fries, or chopped up as an ingredient in soups or vegetable sauté’s.
Elderflower (Sambuca caerulea)
The elder bush has a storied history in Europe as the favored haven of fairies and elves. The bark, leaves and roots are poisonous, but the flowers have been used for thousands of years in beverages believed to have inspiring qualities. The flowers of the American species (Sambuca canadensis) are also used in tea, and rural people sometimes mix the flowers with a batter to make fritters. When left alone, the flowers become elderberries, which are made into elderberry wine or jam.
Preparing Elderflower
Only the flowers, white puffy things, are edible, and they are rarely eaten but typically steeped into a tea or made into a liquor. Pull them off the stems to use them.
The liquor St. Germaine is a distillation of elderflower, employed for many cocktails. The following is a cocktail made popular in New York’s Hell’s Kitchen bars, named after the daughter of the bartender who created it. Warning: one of these will make you merry; have two, and you will dream visions!
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Fuchsia (Onagracia species)
These tropical flowers are often seen in hanging baskets, in brilliant shades of purple, pink, red and white. The flavor is a bit acidic and so the blossoms are best used as a plate or cake garnish.
Garlic Chives (Allium tuberosum)
These fabulous purple pompoms pack a LOT of garlic flavor and make a good substitute for garlic cloves when cooking meats. As a garnish, they are often too powerful to be eaten whole. That said, if you make the classic dish Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic, popularized throughout the U.S. by the late and great James Beard, don’t hesitate to top the roasted bird with flowers when you serve it.
Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens)
Scented geraniums grace many a windowsill with leaves that evoke the smell of lemon, lime, orange, and even chocolate. But the strongest-scented of the bunch is the Rose Geranium. Its leaves and pink flower petals smell strongly of Damask roses. Both petals and leaves are used in potpourri as well as cookery.
Note: common windowbox geraniums are a different species (P. maculatum) and are notable for their harsher scent. Named cultivars of P. graveolens that have the strongest rose fragrance are ‘Attar of Rose’ and ‘True Rose.’
Preparing Geranium Blossoms
Simply pull the petals off, leaving the green base. Don’t harvest the flowers until you are ready to use them, as they will dry out quickly. The typical use is to bake them into cakes, cookies, or sweet breads. Consider adding them to pancakes for a special breakfast treat, topped with warmed Rose Geranium Jelly.
This jelly recipe is a quicker version of Rose Petal Jam, and it is just as delicious when spread on a warm muffin or scone.
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A reliable source for scented geraniums is Logees which offers complete indoor growing directions as well as a recipe for Rose Geranium Pound Cake.
Herbs (Various)
We eat the leaves of many herbs so it should not be surprising that the flowers of these medicinal plants are also edible. Pick off the blossoms and use them where you want just a mild flavor of the actual herb (for example Chives or Basil) or the beauty of an unusual color such as bright blue (Rosemary).
Here is a list of garden herbs with edible and tasty flowers:
Angelica
Arugula
Basil
Chamomile
Chives
Coriander
Dill
Fennel
Lemon Balm
Mint
Rosemary
Monarda
Oregano
Sage
Sorrel
Thyme
Hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis)
A central ingredient in Red Zinger Herbal Tea, Hibiscus flowers lend a vibrant red coloring to foods as well as drinks. Related to the hollyhock, Hibiscus are rarely eaten raw but have graced many a sushi tray. However, their colorful petals can be used to make exotic looking, miniature edible wraps for seafood, meats, and vegetable appetizers.
To Prepare Hibiscus
Pull the petals off the flower, being careful not to bruise them, as they tend to be moist and delicate. Wrap seasoned rice, egg custard (tomago) or a mixture of crabmeat and avocado in the petal and secure with a toothpick. Serve chilled.
When using Hibiscus flowers as an edible garnish, leave the flowers whole but remove the stamens and pistils from the centers.
Jasmine (Jasminum sambac)
Grown as a greenhouse plant in the North, or outdoors as a climbing vine in the South, the heavy fragrance of Jasmine conjures romance and tranquility. Jasmine tea is a staple of Asian groceries, and while the mixture generally contains green tea as well as dried flowers, this drink is considered positive for both stress relief and for soothing the stomach.
How to Prepare Jasmine Flowers
Pluck the flowers off the vine and use fresh or dried. To make tea, brew a strong green tea and steep a cup of fresh Jasmine flowers into the liquid. Let cool and stand covered in a cool place for a few days. Strain and refrigerate, to serve hot or cold.
Lavender (Lavandula species)
Lavender has a brisk, herbal flavor and in olden days was used as an antiseptic. Lavender water was used to clean wounds as late as World War I. Today most of us today are familiar with lavender sachets used to repel moths, or lavender water used to fragrance linens.
How to Prepare Lavender
Lavender grows as tiny purple flowers along a stiff stalk. Rub the flowers off the stalk and discard most of the stalks, as which contain essential oils that can be too pungent for cooking. (Note: the stems, not the flowers, are used in perfumes.)
In the garden, Lavender is often teamed up with herb rosemary, and indeed it can be used in cooking wherever you might use rosemary. Pack a tablespoon or two into the cavity of a roasting chicken, or use it in a dry rub on a leg of lamb. The fragrant, herbal flavor of Lavender can be distilled into vinegars or other liquid concoctions.
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Marigold (Tagetes species)
Many people actually dislike the fragrance of Marigolds, as it’s pungent and earthy. If you enjoy this, you’ll also enjoy what marigolds add to cuisine. Close to what the Japanese call “umami,” typically reserved for mushrooms, the bold flavor of Marigolds suggests the petals might be used as if they were another vegetable.
How to Prepare Marigolds
As with other daisy-type flowers, clip the petals only, as the base of the blossom can be bitter. Use cooked, or raw and sprinkled in salads or as a golden garnish. The recipe below is adapted from noted garden writer Cathy Wilkenson Barash, whom I met when she was a gardening editor for Better Homes and Gardens.
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Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus)
The peppery, piquant taste of nasturtium flowers make these cheerful annuals one of the first edible flowers for many chefs. The bright, thick petals, in red, orange, yellow, maroon and white, lend themselves to cooking as well as a raw garnish for salads and meats. Easy to grow from seed, the flowers are produced abundantly on vines, and you will often find them in commercial “edible flower” mixtures at upscale groceries such as Fairway and Whole Foods. The rounded leaves are also edible. Both leaves and flowers make a brilliant garnish for meats and fish.
Preparing Nasturtium Flowers
Varieties without the tubular “spur” are easier to work with, as they can be cleaned easily with a rinse. Chop the petals up to include them in salads, omelettes, and herb butters, which you can use as a spread on breakfast muffins or savory breads.
Recipe: Nasturtium Butter
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Orange Blossom (Citrus sinensis)
Orange trees grow in the warm South and Southwest and can thrive in a greenhouse in the North. The white starry blossoms are incredibly fragrant, as well as edible. Use the flowers as a garnish for cocktails, mixed into tropical fruit salads, or to decorate entrees or desserts.
Pansy (see Violet)
Pineapple Sage (Salvia elegans)
This tall but frost-tender garden perennial sparkles in late summer with bright red flowers that attract hummingbirds. Both the leaves and the flowers have a pineapple-like flavor.
Preparing Pineapple Sage
The small, tubular flowers pull off quite easily from the rangy stems.
Sprinkle them on fruit salads and ice cream, float them in hot or cold drinks, or fry them up in flour-based fritters.
Pineapple Guava (Feijoa sellowiana)
This shrubby South American plant is used for hedges in the South and Southwest. Dainty pink flowers by the dozens appear in spring, and eventually ripen into a small green edible fruit. Though not related to the true guava (Psidium species) both the fruit and the flower taste sweet.
Preparing Pineapple Guava Flower
This is simple. Pick unsprayed flowers and toss them into a fruit salad with berries, pineapple and a few maraschino cherries, which will bring out the pink tones on the inside of the petals.
Rose (Rosa species) [link to introduction section on roses]
Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius)
The bright orange flowers of this sunny summer annual release color when cooked. While typically used to dye fabric., cooks use this also as a substitute for more expensive saffron when making yellow rice. (Saffron, by the way, is the pollen of a species of crocus.) The seeds are used to make a cooking oil.
Preparing Safflower
Pick the flowers when fully open. Grasp the base with one hand, and twist off the petals with the other hand. Use fresh or dried. While not much on flavor, the color that comes off the petals enhances the look of soups, stews, casseroles, and breads.
Recipe: Safflower Rice
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Tulips are a member of the onion family and both the flowers and the underground bulbs are edible. During World War II, a terrible famine struck the Dutch countryside and the people of Holland actually ate the tulip bulbs rather than planting them as they had done for centuries. An older Dutch friend of mine vividly recalled her mother cooking tulip bulbs because potatoes were not to be had.
Today the tulip flower is often used as a kind of shell for sweets and for stuffing with cheese, vegetables, salads or meats. Tulips have a bean-like flavor which enhances crab salads or shrimp salads made with mayonnaise, and the pink-flowered tulips actually taste a bit sweet! Try this at your next fancy luncheon and don’t forget to tell your guests they can eat the petals as well as the fillings!
Preparing Tulip Flowers
Choose unsprayed flowers not yet fully opened. With your fingertips or small scissor, remove the fuzzy stamens and pistils inside and just leave the base and the petals. Fill the resulting “shell” with any type of salad for a colorful first course.
Violet (Viola species) [link to introduction section on roses]
Woodruff (Gallium odoratum)
This May-flowering groundcover has tiny white flowers and a long history in German cuisine! It is the essential flavoring for May Wine (Maiwein or Maibowle) traditionally served on May 1.
Preparing Woodruff Blossoms
The sweet fragrance of the flowers becomes more pronounced when the flowers are dried. The stems are bitter, so only the flowers are used to infuse a white wine.
To make your own May Wine, decant a bottle of sweet white wine (such as a Reisling) into a carafe. Suspend the woodruff bunches into the liquid, taking care that the stems do not touch the wine. Let steep in a cool place or the refrigerator overnight. Strain and serve in wine glasses, garnished with a strawberry.
Yucca (Yucca filamentosa)
Native to the American Southwest, yucca is often seen in gardens as an accent plant. From a spiky, cactus-like base, a stem of white bell-shaped flowers rises in spring. A common name for this plant is Adam’s Needle or Spanish Bayonet. Native Americans not only ate the flowers but also used the stringy material of the leaves to make baskets.
Preparing Yucca Flowers
Use only the tips of the petals because the centers are bitter.
Recipe: Southwestern Yucca Hash
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Zucchini Blossom
Zucchini and squash plants grow with two kinds of flowers: the male flower is large, bright orange and wrinkly, and the female flower is smaller and yellow. Both blossoms are edible, but the larger male flower is typically used, fried or stuffed and baked, as an Italian appetizer.
Preparing Zucchini Flowers
Choose blossoms not quite fully open, and pick the blossoms fresh on the day you will cook them. With your fingers, open the petals to make sure there aren’t any insects inside (this is common, don’t freak out) and use your fingertips or a scissor to snip off the pistils and stamens (the parts that look like little wires). Rinse gently before cooking.
There are as many recipes for fried squash blossoms as there are Italian grandmas!
One of the more elaborate is presented by celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis here.
If you prefer something simpler, dip the flowers in egg, then in seasoned flour, and fry in olive oil until golden and crispy. Serve immediately; these treats don’t keep.
