The phenomenon of beautiful edible flowers is not something new. It has started a long time before, since garnishing food with flowers become a common thing. However, back then these beautiful flowers on your plate purposed only for decoration, not to be eaten.
Nowadays, people begin to enjoy eating edible flowers, either in fresh or cooked. The grocery stores also manage to sell various flowers to garnish and cook. It eases us to find the edible flower without any hesitation.
However, the best way to get this edible flower is by growing your own. Growing them also has no different from others. Considering that not all types of flowers can be eaten, ensure to take a few precautions and tricks to grow your flower be flavorful and beautiful.
Pro and Cons Eating Beautiful Edible Flowers
Generally, all kind of flowers that can be consumed is classified as edible flowers. Its function may similar to vegetables or herbs that being a part of a meal. With their unique taste and colors, the popularity of edible flowers keeps growing rapidly.
People start making a new recipe with their innovation and creativity. Adding flowers to foods basically can adorn the dish by providing unique flavor and aroma, along with perfect decoration. Besides, flowers also can be used to make tasteful salads. Believe it or not, flowers have so many good nutrients inside.
For instance, dandelion has been known for its high antioxidants and polyphenols. It also possesses with anti-angiogenesis along with anti-inflammatory agent. However, the number of beautiful edible flowers you can eat is just in small amounts. Mostly, there are so many flowers that are not safe to be eaten.
For example, the Apple flower contains a hazardous substance like cyanide. Borage and daylily are also dangerous because of their diuretics. Meanwhile, sweet woodruff can damage your health by its blood-thinning effects.
Because there is no exact standardization of whether the flowers are edible or not, toxic flowers can be easily mistaken as edible. Even if the flowers are edible, you still have to be careful. Indeed, non-toxic flowers potentially cause severe allergies for people. Thus, you should know how to choose and prepare it to be a part of your meal.
Choosing and Preparing Beautiful Edible Flowers before Eating Them
Flowers or vegetables, or other edible plants are always best to consume in fresh conditions. Ideally, they will taste better when you harvest in the morning when these flowers are full of water. If you won’t use them immediately, better keep them in water to stay fresh.
Or, store them using damp paper towels and keep in the refrigerator. Always remind that an edible flower doesn’t mean you can eat all parts of it. The edible part is only for its petals. Make sure to remove the stamens and postils before eating.
To add it to cooking, leave the flowers to the last minute to keep its taste, color, and texture. To make a salad, sprinkle it on top after being tossed. Don’t forget to wash them gently by dipping in a bowl or running water.
It will help remove some bees or bugs adhered to the petals. If you’re still considering whether the flower is edible or not, here are simple tips that important to follow;
1. Don’t ever pick old, dusty, faded, or discolored blossoms near the road.
2. Don’t use pesticides to manage your flowers. Instead, it is better to cut the part that has pest issues and encourage them to regrowth.
Varieties of Beautiful Edible Flowers
Mostly, herb flowers are tasty and edible to eat. Adding them to your dish also makes it more attractive and healthy. You can use herbal flowers such as basil, anise hyssop, bee balm, cilantro, dill, chives, garlic, and fennel. You also can use these kinds of edible flowers to your menu:
1. Dandelion, it is quite delicious and can be fermented to make dandelion wine. Better to choose young and tender dandelion.
2. Begonia, it offers a new sensation with a taste that resembles lemon with a crispy texture. Only use the petals to garnish or serve it as an appetizer.
3. Rosemary, its leaves and flowers are a perfect combination with pork or poultry.
4. Carnations, it can be processed into candy, wine, or being a cake decoration.
5. Marigold, it is a perfect substitution for saffron with its citrus flavor.
Besides this the list above, there are so many additional flowers that can be consumed. Keep in mind to always wash them before eating or using in decoration or garnishing. These beautiful edible flowers will make your food better in taste and look.
