Besides how beautiful the flowers appear, some are pretty delicious to taste. Edible flowers can add flavor, color, and nutrition to your dishes. It would be worthwhile to make them part of your palate. This blog post lists the top 10 edible flowers you can grow in your backyards.
10Borage
Borage is also known as “starflower.” It usually grows in the Mediterranean region but can also be cultivated in the garden. Most often, the blooms seem blue. But some pink-to-white varieties also pop out into the limelight rarely. They prefer a temperate climate during their life cycle, and flowering occurs from June to September.
Borage seed oil extracted from its seeds has a high commercial value. With a mild cucumber-like flavor, the flowers often garnish salads and add beauty to your dining. The star-shaped, vibrant blue blossoms produce plenty of nectar. Honeybees use this nectar to yield sweet and delicate honey.
As a fresh vegetable-like flavor, borage has some benefits in making German and Italian cuisines. Borage adds flavor to pickled gherkins. The Italians exploit these flowers in making their traditional pasta fillings.
9Hibiscus
Hibiscus commonly grows in warm, tropical, and subtropical areas. The blossoms come in various colors, from red, blue, and white to pink. Hibiscus tea is quite famous worldwide, but the name may vary with the countries where they are served.
Red-colored beverage imparts a unique flavor and is rich in nutrients and vitamin C content. Sugar-coated dried hibiscus is delicious and is often used to make candies. Roselle species of the hibiscus family act as a souring ingredient and are used in making the native chicken soup in the Vasayan islands, The Philippines.
They also garnish desserts that usually serve as a light delicacy. Sour-tasted tasted tea made from hibiscus can lower blood pressure. And the blossoms also have some medicinal use in Ayurveda.
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8Zucchini blossoms
Zucchini blossoms quickly grow in many parts of the world, prominently in Italy and the United States. Shiny yellow-colored flowers with white and green striations are delightful when eaten in raw form or cooked. Being a seasonal delicacy, farmers commercially cultivate and harvest these squash crops to get market benefits.
The whole part of the flower is edible. When dried, Zucchini blossoms turn out to be crispy and crunchy. Stuffed with Parmesan cheese, ricotta cheese, and other herbs and then pan-fried after dipping in a smooth batter is the traditional way of making Italian cuisine with zucchini flowers.
They also served as a topping for pizza. A squash flavor with a smooth velvet texture soothes our taste buds. Since they are delicate and delicious to taste, raw zucchini flowers often use while making salads.
7Lavender
As the name indicates, the flowers appear in violet, blue, lilac, and, most often, purple-blue colors. Lavenders are extensively grown in temperate areas. But their name varies from English lavender to French lavender, and more depending on the region where they are harvested.
They give a sweet and subtle fragrance. Flower buds are used in making tea, and after bee processing, they form a perfect ingredient in monofloral honey. Lavender flower buds add a sweet and savory flavor to dishes.
Professional chefs often try new cuisines using these flower buds since they can quickly mix up with sheep and goat milk cheeses. The flower buds are often blended with green tea and herbal teas. Lavender also flavors desserts and baked foods. Marshmallows and lavender scones made from dried lavender buds and syrup are unique cultural cuisines in the united states.
6Chrysanthemum
Belongs to the daisy family, chrysanthemum flowers are native to East Asia and North America. Chrysanthemum buds are edible and are part of many Asian cuisines. They appear as an essential ingredient in many Chinese cuisines, like casseroles, hotpots, stir-fries, and stews, where the flower greens are popular in the name “tong hao.”
The taste of chrysanthemum varies from tangy to peppery depending on its type. The dried chrysanthemum gives an aromatic flavor when added while preparing tea. So, making them part of our diet is worth it since they provide enough potassium and magnesium.
Chrysanthemums can pair well with soy sauce, garlic, lemon, and vinegar. In Japan, the spring chrysanthemum is called “shungiku” and is often used in making the sukiyaki hot pot.
5Pansy
Pansies are versatile and prefer to grow in cool weather conditions. They are used to garnish fresh salads and are candied while making desserts. They often appear as spotted or streaked pansies with a fantastic array of bright hues. Sometimes single colored flowers also garnish the cuisines.
In the raw form, the flowers have a spicy, lettuce-like flavor. The cold-pressed fresh organic flowers make toppings for cake recipes. Candying helps them get preserved for a long time and are used in making cookies. Pansy Tartlets are perfect for the evening tea.
They act as decorative in baked goods and cocktails. Pansies have antimicrobial action that helps in healing injuries and other infections. Their soothing behavior aid in healing throat irritations.
4Viola
Since they appear in a rainbow of colors ranging from bright yellow to raspberry blue, they make a colorful palate for your daily diet. Smooth and soft texture with perfumed fragrance often has a subtle sweet flavor. As the flowers taste like honey, they are used as toppings for many creative dishes.
Viola blooms have vitamin-rich nutrients. They also exhibit anti-oxidant properties to strengthen our immune systems. Due to the silky texture, they can float beautifully over cocktails and mocktails. The crystallization of the flower with egg whites and sugar gives a crisp consistency and is used professionally in making delicious dishes.
A recent study revealed that white and yellow violas are rich sources of proteins and antioxidants, whereas red violas contain the highest percentage of carotenoids and carbohydrates. Violas also enhance the flavor of beverages.
3Nasturtium
The bright yellow to red colored flowers have an incredibly delicious taste either in their raw form or cooked. As an edible herb, it forms a culinary decoration for salads and desserts. The flowers impart a spicy flavor when added to green salads. Even in their blooming stage, they exhibit culinary use, and their taste becomes spicier while growing into full bloom.
Nasturtiums can dye vinegar, sauces, and other infusions. They prefer warm weather conditions to a slight sunshade and adequate watering. But any variations in their living environment can cause their flavor to fade away gradually.
Besides a peppery flavor, the light sweet nectar in the blooms is rich in vitamins B1, B2, and C and minerals like iron, calcium, and manganese. Nasturtium salad, hot sauce, and butter are famous cuisines made from Nasturtium flowers.
2Marigold
A typical annual plant that usually grows in our gardens. Bright orange to yellow colored edible marigold flowers produces a mild citrous to peppery taste. The summer blooms make the garden beautiful with their vibrant colors.
Drop shots, lemon and tangerine gem, and Mexican tarragon are marigold varieties commonly grown for culinary purposes. They have perfect taste in their early stage and become bitter once they age. Not all marigolds are edible. So, selective cultivation is needed once you grow them for commercial purposes.
Edible marigolds can be used as a garnish for salads and tea infusions. Since they produce natural orange dye, they are sometimes called” poor men’s saffron.” That’s why American cheese soup usually appears in an extra orange color.
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1Rose
In addition to the sweet fragrance, rose petals are delicate and delicious. As part of the Rosaceae family, they taste slightly sweet like apples and cherries. Even though all flowers are edible, some rose varieties with intense scents are tastier.
Rose petals are used to make herbal teas and jams. Also, they garnish desserts and salads. Rose syrup is an excellent ingredient for making cocktails and can be used as a sweetener when making cakes. Having a pleasant aroma, the professional chefs add rose petals to create rose-infused beverages.
Roses are a great source of vitamins and minerals, especially vitamin A and C, which strengthens our immune system. Chopped rose petals coated with sugar and butter pair really well with ordinary ingredients for making rose-flavored cuisines. Lady of Shalott, Crown Princess Margareta, Woods’ Rose, and Alba are some edible rose varieties you can grow in your garden.
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