I had been thinking about some things that people eat that seem strange to the rest of the population and I remembered my sister loved to eat a sweet dish that was basically made from rose pedals. It’s called gulkand. Than I started looking at what other edible things people make using flowers. There were many but some I found interesting were wine made from dandelions deep, fried pumpkin flowers and many flowers are eaten raw because when cooked they lose their flavor.
Flowers are eaten all over the world in many forms. There are some problems that can arise if you are just starting to use flowers in your dishes. Making sure the flower you use is not poisonous or causes any sort of unwanted side effects. If you are allergic to any foods or plants you want to test to see if you get an allergic reaction to that type of flower. Always taste the flower to see what type of taste it has (spicy/sweet) before adding it to any dish. Here is a chart that shows what different flowers taste like and if they cause any allergies or are poisonous. Even if this chart doesn’t say a flower can cause a allergic reaction make sure you test it before adding to a dish. Also remember to start out using flowers in small quantities because you won’t know how well they work on you digestive system.
I remember when I stayed at a bed and breakfast on Vancouver Island, the woman running it would always garnish her plates with edible flowers from her garden. It brings back such wonderful memories :)
ReplyDeleteI also noticed that Community Foods sells edible flowers. I think it's so neat that you can garnish let alone use flowers in your cooking. Very Cool!!
You are right, flowers can change and add to the taste of different foods. We use rose flower petals in yogurt with east indian food and it tastes really good. I have not tried it in many other foods and am going to start experimenting now, after I read your interesting weblog!
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