They not only enrich the taste but also pamper the eye: chive flowers decorate a wide variety of dishes and refine the dishes with a mildly spicy note. If you missed the chive harvest, let the flowers melt in your mouth instead.
Can you eat and use chive flowers?
Chive flowers are not only edible, they also enrich dishes in terms of taste and appearance. They have a mild, spicy taste and can be used in herb butter, s alt or vinegar. It is best to collect chive flowers early in the morning.
Can you eat chive flowers?
Chive flowers not only look pretty, they are also edible
Chives grow as a herbaceous plant from whose underground rhizome numerous tubular leaves emerge. These are harvested and used as a kitchen spice. Allium schoenoprasum blooms between May and August. There are 30 to 50 individual flowers in the inflorescences, tightly packed together. The shape of the flower stalk is reminiscent of a leaf, but has a firmer consistency and protrudes clearly above the leaf tuft. Chives flowers are not poisonous but are edible. The leaves can also be eaten during the flowering period.
This is what chives taste like when they are in bloom:
- Flower stems firm and woody with bitter taste
- Chive flowers are slightly spicy with a subtle sweetness
- Leaves become increasingly bitter with age
Excursus
Where chives grow
Chives are found in cool climate regions. The main European distribution area extends across Fennoscandia, although the plant also grows wild in the Central European mountains. Here, the popular kitchen spice has specialized in wet habitats. The plant shares biotopes with typical moisture indicators such as horsetail or common avocado. Chives tend to develop into the dominant plant species on boggy substrates.
Using chive flowers: recipes
Word has now gotten around that the pink flowers are edible. Many online retailers offer the opportunity to buy chive flowers that are still closed. This way they stay fresh until delivery. Eating chive flowers is something for gourmets:
| Ingredients | Recipe | |
|---|---|---|
| Chive blossom butter | 250 g butter, 20 chive flowers, 2 cloves of garlic, s alt and pepper | Melt the butter, press the garlic and mix with the flowers into the butter, season and chill |
| Chive blossom oil | 500 ml sunflower oil, 8 chive flowers, rosemary, parsley, thyme | Pour oil over the flowers and herbs and let them steep for three weeks |
| Caramelized chive flowers | Olive oil, chive flowers of your choice, powdered sugar, balsamic vinegar, s alt and pepper | Fry the flowers in olive oil, sprinkle with powdered sugar and deglaze with balsamic vinegar, season |
Rezept für karamellisierte Schnittlauchblüten
S alt with chive flowers
Grind any amount of chive flowers with coarse s alt, or grind the mixture with a hand blender and food processor. A mildly aromatic herbal s alt with a greenish color is obtained using an amount of around ten flowers per two tablespoons of s alt. The taste and color become more intense with more flower heads. Spread the s alt on a tray lined with baking paper and let it dry in the oven at the lowest setting. To prevent lumps from forming, you should regularly fluff the s alt with a fork.
Chive flowers are versatile and taste mild.
Pickling in vinegar
For homemade vinegar with a spicy note, you need around 20 chive flowers and 250 milliliters of mild white wine vinegar. Place the flowers in a screw-top jar and pour the vinegar over them. The sealed jar is placed in a cool, dark place for a week. Swirl the container daily so that all the flowers are covered in the vinegar. After seven days, you can filter the flowers from the purple vinegar and fill it into bottles.
Tip
The vinegar tastes quite spicy and can be used as a salad dressing. Onions are then no longer necessary.
How to collect chive flowers
After harvesting, the bouquet should be shaken thoroughly to leave insects in the garden
If your chives are blooming in the garden, you can cut off the flower stems at the base. Early in the morning is the ideal time to collect because then the flowers are rich in essential oils and nectar. At the same time, you prevent too many flower-visiting insects from entering the kitchen with the harvest, as they are usually only active when the sun is shining and the temperatures are warm. Shake the crop vigorously to remove hidden insects from the flowers.
Tip
Washing destroys the delicate petals so that the aromas evaporate more quickly. Therefore, only collect flowers that are in perfect condition and do not need to be washed.
Frequently asked questions
Can you eat chive flower buds?
The flower buds are used as false capers. When soaked in a boiled decoction of vinegar and various herbs, the buds take on an intense aroma. They refine hearty dishes and go well with cheese, pasta or salad.
Which types of chives produce edible flowers?
Chive varieties differ mainly in the thickness of the tubular leaves and their aroma. All varieties of the species Allium schoenoprasum are referred to as chives. While the original species blooms pink, edible cultivated forms develop variable colors:
- Forescate: intense bright pink
- Profusion: sterile and pink-violet flowers retain their delicate taste for a particularly long time
- Elbe: white-flowering variety
When can I harvest chive leaves and flowers?
At the beginning of the growing season, chives need nutrients to develop leaves for photosynthesis. During this time the leaves taste best because they contain many essential oils and vitamins. When the plant comes to flower, it puts all of its energy into flower growth. These should be harvested shortly after they bloom, as they also lose their flavor with age. Sterile varieties retain their flowers for longer because the energy is not needed for seed formation. Therefore, such chive flowers taste mild throughout the entire flowering period.
Why should I cut off chive flowers in time?
If you break out or cut off emerging flower shoots in a timely manner, the plant saves energy due to the lack of flower development. This means the leaves stay fresh longer and the harvest period is extended. The tubular leaves become increasingly woody as the flowers develop.
What soil does chives need?
In general, chives prefer loose and nutrient-rich soil that ensures moist conditions. Allium schoenoprasum is divided into two subspecies that grow in different habitats. While the subspecies 'sibiricum' specializes in moist soils at alpine altitudes, the subspecies 'schoenoprasum' thrives on muddy substrates with fine soil in the lowlands.
