Edible flowers refer to flowers and plants whose leaves or flowers can be eaten directly. Many edible flowers can be found not only in roots, stems, leaves, flowers and fruits, but also in food, pharmacy, wine making and essence extraction. According to incomplete statistics, there are about 97 families 100 genera 180 species of edible flowers. There are many kinds and rich contents. The protein content of flowers is far better than that of beef and eggs, and the vitamin C content is higher than that of fruits. Chrysanthemums, roses, violets and pumpkin flowers are of great help to brain development. In some European and American countries, eating flowers is on the rise, and eating flowers is the latest dietary nutrition for modern people. Japan regards chrysanthemum as a petal vegetable with high quality and no pests. There are many ways to eat in China, including Sophora japonica cake, chrysanthemum cake, day lily, scented tea, plum porridge, sweet-scented osmanthus sour soup and so on. Rose, rose, Sophora japonica, hibiscus, perilla, hibiscus tuberose, etc. The most processed oil for edible flowers is called 2 1 century edible oil.

Pearl orchid, native to subtropical region, belongs to Chloranthaceae, an evergreen shrub. Nodes are obviously upright or prone, like warm, wet and cool environment, fat and cold. The opposite leaves are oval, with blunt teeth at the edge. September -65438+ 10, millet-like small yellow flowers are very fragrant. Flowers and rhizomes can extract essential oils and smoked tea. The famous Cynthia fragrant tea is made of yellow flowers and tea. Rootstocks can also be used in medicine.

Lotus is a perennial aquatic herb of the genus Nelumbo, which is native to southern China. I like warm and bright light, but I am also very cold-resistant. The underground stem of lotus root is plump and cylindrical, growing in underwater mud. Leaf blade rounded, entire or undulate. From June to August, pink or white flowers bloom with fragrance. After the lotus blooms, the lotus seeds come out of the lotus. In addition to starch, lotus seeds also contain protein, fat, aspartame and honey. It has the effects of nourishing the body, calming the nerves and calming the mind. Use it to make lotus seed moon cakes and eight-treasure lotus porridge. It's delicious. Lotus root can be eaten raw or cooked. Raw lotus root is tender and crisp, rich in water, sweet and delicious. You can also fill the hole with glutinous rice and cook it and slice it. S delicious. You can make lotus root starch. Lotus root powder is a pure product made of lotus root. Compared with other starches, it has fine texture, beautiful color, convenient eating and rich nutrition. It is especially suitable for the elderly, the weak and the sick, and it is a nourishing product for clearing blood and calming the nerves. Lotus root, lotus petals, lotus plums, lotus leaves, etc. It can be used as medicine, and it is full of treasures.

Rose, native to China, belongs to Rosaceae, a deciduous shrub. The stems are densely barbed and barbed, and the leaves are compound, consisting of 5~9 leaflets with many folds. Strong adaptability to cold and drought, like light and ventilation, avoid humidity and water accumulation. Flowers bloom in succession from April to June, with purple, red, white and other colors, divided into single petals and double petals. Dried flowers can be used as medicine, rose candy, rose moon cake, rose sweet soup and so on. Tobacco, rose, black tea with petals. In the old society, the tribute to the emperor was roses. You can also extract essential oils.

Evergreen, native to China, belongs to Liliaceae and is an evergreen perennial herb. The stem is short and thick, rooted at the nodes, and the lanceolate leaves are thick, hard and complete. Yin is afraid of the scorching sun, and fleshy roots are afraid of stagnant water, so fertile and loose soil with good drainage should be preferred. Yellow-green flowers bloom from May to June. This is a valuable flower for observing leaves and fruits. Roots and leaves can be used as medicine, which has the functions of clearing away heat and toxic materials, strengthening the heart and diuresis.

Marigold is native to Mexico and belongs to the genus Panicum in Compositae. Stems erect, stout, multi-branched, leaves opposite, pinnately parted. Love sunshine and fertile soil. Yellow or orange flowers bloom from June to October. Flowers and leaves can be used as medicine, and have the effects of clearing heat and resolving phlegm, enriching blood and dredging menstruation, and promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis.

In ancient China, chrysanthemum buds were used as dishes, and cakes were baked with washed petals mixed with honey, which tasted elegant and sweet. As we all know, chrysanthemum meat, chrysanthemum slices and chrysanthemum porridge are all delicious at home and abroad, and they are the top grades at banquets. Guangdong snake soup is made of snake meat and white chrysanthemum petals. Chrysanthemum pot is a delicious dish cooked with white chrysanthemum petals. Chrysanthemum crystal is made of chrysanthemum. People like to make tea with chrysanthemum, which can produce saliva and moisten the throat. Chrysanthemum contains vitamins, chrysanthemum, amino acids, glandular fat koji and other ingredients, and has the functions of dispelling cold, detoxifying and clearing heat, refreshing and improving eyesight. Can be used for treating hypertension, migraine, acute conjunctivitis, etc. There is also chrysanthemum wine, which can cure dizziness caused by head wind.

Plum blossoms not only have high ornamental value, but also are deeply loved by people at home and abroad. Its fruit can be made into all kinds of honey, so it is favored by people, such as green plum, plum blossom, dark plum, dried plum, canned food and so on. Plum juice can be used to make all kinds of drinks and sweets, which is sweet and sour. Quenching thirst with plum blossoms is Cao Cao's clever plan. Plum mud and sour plum soup can not only quench thirst, but also prevent and treat intestinal infectious diseases. Cook the meat, Dali, Yunnan, and roast chicken all use plums as seasoning, which is said to increase the delicacy. Cutting plums into mud is the secret of keeping osmanthus fragrans fresh in Suzhou kiln. Nuts can relieve cough and moisten the lungs. Flowers can extract essence.

In early spring, the magnolia trees are full of fragrant flowers as white as jade, like Chun Xue; After the flowers bloom, the green leaves are shaded; In autumn, there are red fruits on the trees, which are really beautiful. It is an excellent tree species for beautification, greening and fragrance. The petals of Magnolia grandiflora are thick and big. If you wrap it in wet flour and fry it in oil pan with bean paste, it will be very sweet and delicious. This is the famous Mulan movie at home and abroad. Magnolia slices are sweet, crisp and delicious. Flowers can also extract essence. Bark and bud can be used as medicine, which has the function of detoxification and analgesia.

Fried meat slices of orchids, magnolia, roses and rosebuds can also be made into candied fruit. Dendrobium flowers are delicious to make salad. Jianghuai folks often put Osmunda japonica, Robinia pseudoacacia and pear flowers in oil and put sugar in it. Or mix the noodles and steam them in a cage, then add refined salt and sesame oil, which is delicious.

Honeysuckle can be fried with sliced meat, shredded pork, or made into tea.

The leaves of Viola yedoensis are bitter and fragrant. Soak them in water for a day, then scald them with boiling water to make salty rice porridge.

Soak Sophora japonica in boiling water, make stuffing, and make cake with flour. Its fragrant and pleasant taste is comparable to other dishes.

HEMEROCALLIS HEMEROCALLIS: Flowers can be fried, made into soup, or steamed in a steamer until withered, then taken out and dried to make dried vegetables.

Lily:: Underground bulbs can be peeled and cooked, or dried in the sun to cook porridge.

Sophora japonica: Flowers can be eaten directly and steamed with noodles to make delicious soup.

Toona sinensis: Both the stem tip and young leaves are edible, and can be mixed with pepper or fried eggs.

Celosia cristata: Young leaves are cooked and eaten cold, and can also be eaten with pasta.

Wisteria: Flowers soaked in sugar can be used as raw materials for making cakes. But don't eat it raw. It's-it's slightly toxic.

Impatiens:: The shoots and shoot tips can be fried.

Lotus: its rhizome is called lotus root, which can be cold, fried and eaten raw.

Magnolia: Stir-fried flowers and noodles to eat, or make candied fruit with sugar and honey. Now you can also see magnolia at the scented tea counter.

Hibiscus flowers:: flowers can be used to decoct soup, and young leaves can replace tea leaves.

The above are excerpts from various books and folklore. For reference only.

Feed on flowers

The advantages of flower planting in China are shown in germplasm resources, climate resources, labor resources, market advantages and flower culture advantages. During the Tenth Five-Year Plan period, the flower planting area in China reached 640,000 hectares, an increase of 326.7% compared with 654.38+500,000 hectares at the end of the Ninth Five-Year Plan.

Introduction of edible flowers

spring

There are many edible flowers, such as magnolia, rose, rose, Dendrobium, Osmunda japonica, pear, Populus tomentosa, Platycladus orientalis, honeysuckle, viola, Sophora japonica and so on. Orchids can be fried with sliced meat, magnolia, roses and rosebuds, or pickled. Dendrobium flowers are delicious to make salad. The leaves of Platycladus orientalis, including branches and flowers, are collected, put in urns, sealed with rice paper, and ground into fine powder in summer to make soup and tea. Its color is green and fragrant. Jianghuai folks often put Osmunda japonica, Robinia pseudoacacia and pear flowers in oil and put sugar in it. Or mix the noodles together and steam them in a cage, then add refined salt and sesame oil, which is delicious. In Hangzhou, Jiaxing and other places in Zhejiang, the dry buds of roses and Chinese rose flowers are often soaked in black tea for drinking, which can dredge meridians, warm the stomach and soothe the nerves. Honeysuckle can be fried with sliced meat, shredded pork, or made into tea. The leaves of Viola yedoensis are bitter and fragrant. Soak them in water for a day, then scald them with boiling water to make salty rice porridge. Soak Sophora japonica in boiling water, make stuffing, and make cakes with dough. Its smell is pleasant, but it can't compare with other dishes.

summer

There are many kinds of edible flowers, including lily, mint, white lotus, jasmine, pearl orchid, hawthorn, tuberose, yellow flower and so on. Lily's shooting is very famous. Boil water with tender mint flowers and leaves, add cooked mung beans and red dates, add sugar and refrigerate. It is a good product for relieving summer heat and has the function of tonifying deficiency. Jasmine, pearl orchid and hawksbill flower can not only make tea, but also make fried shredded pork, sliced pork and fish slices fresh and refreshing, and can also be used as auxiliary materials in eight-treasure fragrant rice. Tuberose buds, stewed in cooked fresh berries, are delicious. Fresh daylily must be soaked in water for two hours to squeeze out the water, and then mixed with all kinds of meat, fried, stewed, boiled and seasoned.

autumn

Common flowers are chrysanthemum, pumpkin flowers, hibiscus and osmanthus. Picking fresh stevia rebaudiana and adding shredded pork, dried laver or egg soup, or frying chicken breast and shredded chicken all have a unique and elegant flavor. Chrysanthemum can also be used in brewing, pharmacy and food, which has the effect of refreshing the brain and reducing fire. Pumpkin flowers hibiscus flowers are commonly used in Jianghuai folk to scramble eggs and make soup. As for sweet-scented osmanthus, people in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces use sugar stains and salting to make sweet-scented osmanthus sauce, and use broken walnuts to make soup, cook rice or make cakes, which is good for the spleen and stomach. If you sprinkle some sweet osmanthus on the sweet soup, it can be described as a dessert. Osmanthus fragrans is used as a spice to make foods and drinks, such as Osmanthus Jelly, Osmanthus fragrans candy, Osmanthus fragrans moon cakes, Osmanthus fragrans sweet dumplings, Osmanthus fragrans wine, Osmanthus fragrans tea, etc. It is colorful, sweet and delicious.

winter

Edible flowers include Chimonanthus praecox, Cymbidium hybridum, Plum Blossom and Crataegus pinnatifida. For example, plum blossoms are sprinkled on finished dishes or soup, which is fragrant and appetizing. This is also a special dish stewed with orchids. There are many flowers that drink dew after distillation, such as perilla, bergamot, wild rose, peony, peony, gardenia, Hosta, orchid and so on. Not less than 30 kinds. The stems and roots of some flowers also have edible value. For example, the cactus slices in the cactus are stir-fried and taste quite tender. But some flowers, such as poinsettia, Datura stramonium, five-color plum, iris, camphor, lily of the valley and so on. Although beautiful, from the appearance, they each contain different degrees of toxicity, so they must not be eaten indiscriminately or excessively to avoid poisoning.

Seasons and methods of flower consumption

In recent years, there are dozens of health drinks made of flowers. Common ones are: rose health drink, chrysanthemum tea, apocynum tea, cassia seed tea, honeysuckle tea, golden lotus tea and so on. Cold drinks and h

Chinese medicine, health tea, flower wine, pastry food, etc. Edible flowers can generally produce several times the benefits. If we can use high technology to extract effective components from flowers and make them into spices, sesame oil and medicines, the market value development potential will be even greater. For example, rose sesame oil is in short supply at home and abroad, and the price is also expensive. The domestic market price is 8000- 10000 yuan/kg, and the market development potential is very great. Therefore, it has become an important way to improve the added value of edible flowers by using modern high technology to separate and extract effective components from edible flowers.

Edible flower varieties include: chamomile, Roman chamomile, begonia, wisteria, hibiscus, impatiens, aloe, domestic/wild plum blossom, domestic/wild pear blossom, wild chrysanthemum, chrysanthemum, calendula, chrysanthemum, verbena, mint leaves, lemon tea, turnip cabbage, lavender, osmanthus fragrans and wintersweet. Cockscomb, white/red rhododendron, notoginseng, lily, white snow, Leucaena leucocephala, stevia rebaudiana, chloranthus, marigold, magnolia officinalis, hemp, trollius chinensis, apricot, rose, Sophora japonica, lotus, cogongrass rhizome, African claw, fiery red, fire grass, wild hibiscus, wild vine and bitter herb. Hemerocallis, Begonia, Wisteria, Flos Magnoliae, Kapok, Impatiens, Begonia, Abelmoschus manihot, Writing Style, Cactus, Camellia, Lemon Slices, Republic of China Cauliflower, Rose, Old Crow, Saussurea involucrata, Qionghua, Elm, pumpkin flowers, Lotus, Lotus Leaf, Crocodile, Pine Flower and Plantago.