Want to add some color and flavor to your salads? Edible flowers are a great way to add color and flavor to your dish. They are not only beautiful but also bring refreshing flavors.
Here are 10 of the best edible flowers to include in your next salad!
Introduction
Let's get real here. Salads can be, and sometimes are, really quite boring. Imagine if your salad were a work of art and flavor instead. Edible flowers bring your salad to life.
They are not only making your salad bowl beautiful, but they are also very flavored and nutrient-rich. These edible flowers include from antioxidant-richest petals to delicate floral sweetness, so this is the latest big thing in salad trends.
Why do we love locally sourced edible flowers in our food? Because they are fresh, sustainable, and bursting with benefits.
What Makes Edible Flowers a Great Addition to Your Salad?
More than a simple garnish, edible flowers pack flavor and nutritional punches. They can be rich sources of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals and so hold great benefits to health and wellness in many ways more than taste alone.
They can boost your immune system, maintain healthy skin, and provide refreshing twists on your favorite greens. Every flower has its unique taste, ranging from sweet to spicy, or even citrusy, complementing your favorite salad ingredients.
Edible flowers can be easily mixed with your greens, fruits, and dressings, making them pop with color and flavor.
Let’s know more about them!
Nasturtium
Nasturtium flowers are bold with their peppery flavor, thus becoming a great addition to any salad that needs some spiciness. With a color palette that typically falls into red, orange, and yellow, it doesn't just add spicy zest but also brings any dish to life with its vibrancy. Whether it's for a garden salad or a fresh grain bowl, this peppery edible flower is a must-have for those who have an affinity for spiciness in their food.
Pro Tip: Add these flowers to your salad right before serving. That way, their bright color and strong flavor won't be watered down.
Pansy
Pansy flowers are available in every shade of the rainbow, from lavender and yellow to pink and white. Pretty as they are, they aren't just for looks—they also add a gentle, grassy flavor to match well with leafy greens.
They're an ideal ingredient to add a delicate contrast to your salad's richer flavors. And their colorful petals will give your salad a touch of artistry!
Pro Tip: Pansies are dainty so should be added towards the end of the salad; almost just before serving time.
Marigold
Marigold flowers bloom bright sunny yellow-orange, but it's the citrus flavor and refreshment they add to the mix that's a great advantage for salad makers.
Used in either petals alone or sprinkled whole, the colorful marigold can be used as an excellent source of color and taste for any green mix, especially great with citrus vinaigrettes and citrus-based dressings.
Pro Tip: Use marigold petals in fruit salads or dressings if an added zing is what's needed.
Chive Blossoms
For fans of onion flavors, nothing is better than Chive blossoms.
Delicate and lavender-colored, these have the mildest onion flavor but are great additions to salads. They add a nice flair as a garnish and are a great addition to both the classic green salad and the grain/legume salads. Being soft and spherical, they bring a wonderful texture and color to the bowl.
Pro tip: Sprinkle Chive blossoms over your salad lightly right before serving to lock in their subtle flavor.
Dandelion
Often considered to be a nuisance weed, dandelion flowers are an extremely nutritious flower. These yellow blooms are known to have a slightly bitter taste. They go great with creamier, richer dressings. Dandelions are high in vitamins and antioxidants; they're an amazing ingredient to add to a salad. Their bold yellow color can brighten up just about any dish, adding that freshness to your greens.
Pro Tip: Mix Dandelion flowers with a dressing of tangy mustard to make the food taste perfectly balanced.
Borage
This blue flower is known for being star-shaped, which adds the subtle flavor of cucumber to your salads. The crisp, refreshing taste of borage is just great for hot summer days when you want something light and revitalizing.
Borage will give your salad a burst of color and an elegant touch, making it fantastic over more delicate greens and fruits.
Pro Tip: Add some borage flowers to a light, refreshing cucumber or tomato salad for added flavor.
Snapdragon
These plants possess a slightly bitter earthiness that adds complexity and depth to salads. Vibrant blooms in every color of the rainbow make snapdragons an eye-catching addition to any dish.
In particular, they work nicely with arugula, radishes, and light balsamic dressing to bring everything into harmony. A firm, satisfying texture makes for a nice crunch.
Pro Tip: Use snapdragons to take run-of-the-mill salads to the next level on a dramatic table centerpiece.
Dianthus
Dianthus flowers have a sweet, clove-like delicate, fragrant flower, making them a wonderful addition to your salad bowl. Their petals are brightly colored, mostly in shades of pink, red, or white, which greatly contrast leafy greens.
It can be perfectly paired with mild cheeses, citrus dressings, and crunchy seeds, which brings a subtle yet aromatic flavor to the salad. Soft petals will also give it a velvet texture, which complements crisp ingredients.
Pro Tip: Scattered dianthus petal adds a garden romance to a salad dish presented at dinner parties and casual outdoor events.
Lavender
Lavender flowers offer a floral twist with a hint of sweetness. For their aromatic fragrance, lavender flowers can add a lovely flavor of flowers to your salad, especially when mixed greens are combined with fruits such as berries or citrus. It is sweet and lovely against the savory elements of your salad.
Pro Tip: Toss in a few sprigs of Lavender flowers with the salad and go with some goat cheese for a really elegant touch.
Violas
Violas are small but powerful. These flowers come in a variety of colors and have a mild, grassy taste that complements any type of salad perfectly. The flavor is mild and will not overpower the dish but adds an elegant touch to your plate. Excellent for those who prefer not to have such an intense floral flavor.
Pro Tip: Top a simple green salad with flowers from Violas or mix the blooms into a microgreen salad.
Zinnias
Zinnias bring in a subtle flavor, very mildly floral and a little bitter, making it suitable for any salad. With their bright colors from pale pinks to warm oranges and reds, these flowers are fantastic to use in both savory and fruit salads. It’s heavenly when paired with citrus segments, goat cheese, and candied nuts, which provides the perfect balance of flavor and textures. The crispness of the zinnias also adds a great crunchy bite to the eating.
Pro Tip: Use zinnias for a pop of color and to elevate salads for celebrations or festive gatherings.
How to Incorporate Edible Flowers into Your Salad
Well now that you know everything you ever wanted to know about the incredible flavor and colors edible flowers provide, it is time to find out how to include edible flowers in the recipes you make in your salad preparations.
Edible flowers turn monotonous salads into a surprise meal every time. Let’s explore the top 2 ways to incorporate them into our salads.
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Simple Garnishes: For a very simple salad made with greens like arugula, spinach, or mixed microgreens, top the salad with some whole edible flowers, and suddenly your salad has much more flair. Nasturtiums or Calendula, for example, will immediately give a most uninteresting salad a pop of color and turn it into something worth the hype!
- Chilled soups: For the more adventuresome, it's even possible to crown a bowl of cold avocado soup with edible flowers: try them with violas and chive blossoms that add a nice color and even flavor when tossed into cold soups-an elegant touch to your summery meals.
Where to Find Locally Grown Edible Flowers
While edible flowers are easy to find at most local farmers' markets, Planted Detroit is the largest vertical farm in Michigan, and it's a great resource for fresh, locally grown edible flowers.
Their farm-to-table flowers are sustainably grown and packed with flavor and nutrients, making them perfect for your next salad. Fresh flowers are not only of better quality but also support sustainable, local agriculture.
Conclusion
Adding edible flowers to your salads is a very simple but effective way of bringing in color, flavor, and nutrients to your dish. It can be the bold flavors of Nasturtium or the delicate sweetness of Lavender for every salad. Moreover, sourcing them locally ensures getting the freshest ingredients from sustainable farms.
So next time you’re prepping a salad, why not try out these gorgeous blooms and give your dish an extra burst of flavor?
Looking for fresh, locally grown edible flowers for your next salad? Explore Planted Detroit’s farm-to-table offerings and bring your salads to life!