On Trend: Petal power adds zing to cooking

20 May 2015 - 02:13 By Edward Smith, ©The Daily Telegraph

Edible flowers are appearing with increasing frequency in restaurant dishes in the trendiest restaurants around the world. You're likely to see pear blossoms and violas overtaking nasturtiums as the edible flower of choice, but any chef worth their hibiscus will tell you that everything in a dish should be integral to the eating experience."If they enhance the dish they can lend so much to cooking," says top international chef Skye Gyngell."Something like borage is beautiful and adds a real cucumber taste, which goes well with fish, crab, lobster."So when are flowers okay?"The time of year is important. Like all ingredients flowers are seasonal and would be out of place in winter."Herbal flowers from coriander, wild garlic and alliums pack a real punch; lavender and elderflower can be floral, and borage, nasturtium and pea flowers enhance existing characteristics.Flowers are great as a sugar syrup on ice creams. ..

There’s never been a more important time to support independent media.

From World War 1 to present-day cosmopolitan South Africa and beyond, the Sunday Times has been a pillar in covering the stories that matter to you.

For just R80 you can become a premium member (digital access) and support a publication that has played an important political and social role in South Africa for over a century of Sundays. You can cancel anytime.

Already subscribed? Sign in below.



Questions or problems? Email helpdesk@timeslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00.