70 Great Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food and Improve Your Health

Suyash is a Master Gardener and the Editorial and Strategy Director at BalconyGardenWeb.com. With a focus on houseplant care, he combines over a decade of hands-on horticultural experience with editorial expertise to guide and educate plant enthusiasts.
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Here are the most beautiful and best Edible Flowers you can grow in your garden to flavor your food and improve your health.

Check out our all-inclusive list of Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food and Improve Your Health.

Here are the Best Edible Weeds You Didn’t Know You Could Eat


Best Edible Flowers

1. Pansy

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Botanical Name: Viola tricolor var. hortensis

Violets are as satisfying to the eye and are one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food. You may have even observed them blended into cocktails and cold drinks. Dress up your salad, use it in stuffings, or flavor the desserts.

2. Chamomile

Botanical Name: Matricaria chamomilla

Like dandelion, it’s an individual from the daisy family, and the flower has a flavor that may help you to remember apples. You can chomp on a couple of raw flowers or dry them and utilize them to brew a calming tea.

Some of its medical advantages incorporate ADHD, relief from bloating, stomach infirmities, and insomnia, which makes them one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Learn about Growing Chamomile in Pots here

3. Rose

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Botanical Name: Rosa

You may also have tasted different foods flavored with rose, for example, rose tea, rose water, rose jelly, rose milk, and even rose ice cream.

Rose petals are rich in various vitamins and minerals, including vitamins A, E, C, D, and B, making them Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

4. Clover flowers

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Botanical Name: Trifolium

If you consider clover as a weed, you should not! The sweet, anise-like taste makes it unique. Serve raw petals in a salad or utilize them to make tea.

Local Americans utilize the flower for cough and cold. It also helps in a condition like varicose veins, known as venous inadequacy, making them one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Learn How to Grow White Clover here

5. Saffron

Botanical Name: Crocus sativus

Saffron is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food. It gives a great taste and color to dishes. Also, saffron is rich in minerals, for example, potassium, calcium, copper, iron, zinc, magnesium, selenium, and manganese.

It has various vitamins, for example, folic acid, niacin, and vitamins A and C.

6. Tree Peony

Botanical Name: Paeonia suffruticosa

Peonies can be added to salads, or you can boil the petals and make tea. This bloom has one of the highest convergences of phenolic mixes, which are anti-inflammatory and may lessen the risk of heart disease and certain cancers, making them one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Here are Beautiful Types of Purple Peony Varieties

7. Japanese Honeysuckle

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Botanical Name: Lonicera japonica

The yellow petals of the honeysuckle have a sweet nectar-like flavor. These are among the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food. Remember that only the blossoms are eatable, and the dark berries are noxious, so continue with care.

8. Marigold

Botanical Name: Tagetes spp.

All marigold flowers are edible, which makes them one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food. Its peppery taste goes well in soups and eggs. You can also use it in place of saffron.

Here are Marigold Benefits in the Garden

9. Nasturtium

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Botanical Name: Tropaeolum

You can also pick them fresh to use in salads or garnish your recipes with them to add color. Their mild peppery, sweet, and mustard-like flavor gives a unique taste to the dishes they add into.

Adding nasturtiums to your food not only adds color, but they are a good source of Vitamin C and other nutrients. It also helps fight against flu, cough, and cold, making them one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

10. Bee Balm

Botanical Name: Monarda

Bee Balm leaves, flowers, and stems are used in alternative medicine as an antiseptic, carminative, diaphoretic, diuretic, and stimulant.

The flower petals are a great addition to a fruit salad, which makes them one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Here are Weeds with Purple Flowers

11. Lavender

Botanical Name: Lavandula

Lavender is a great culinary and medicinal herb. Also, it is one of the most used ingredients in cosmetic industries.

Of all the lavender cultivars, English lavender is most used for culinary purposes due to its sweet fragrance. It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

12. Jasmine

Botanical Name: Jasminum

We don’t need to inform you that jasmine is the most fragrant flower in the world. In foods, jasmine is used to flavor beverages, frozen dairy desserts, candy, baked goods, gelatins, and puddings.

Puddings and dairy desserts with the use of jasmine flowers taste so delicious. It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Here are the Best Indoor Jasmine Varieties to Grow

13. Hibiscus

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Botanical Name: Hibiscus rosa sinensis

It’s said that all Hibiscus cultivars’ flowers are edible, but many hybrid varieties are available, so there could be a risk. However, Hibiscus-rosa-Sinensis, Hibiscus sabdiriffa, and other tropical cultivars are edible.

Hibiscus tea is something you can make from hibiscus flowers. It has great effects on health too.

14. Allium

Botanical Name: Allium

You can use ornamental allium blooms and make your meal look more flavorful and pretty. For the hint of onion or garlic, choose a flower of chives and leeks.

Top the sour-cream-based dips, omelets, rice, soup, and cottage cheese with pink, purple, or white edible flowers. It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Here are the Best Purple Fruits to Grow in the Garden

15. Bachelor’s Button

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Botanical Name: Centaurea cyanus

Garnish desserts or salads with bachelor’s button flowers and enjoy the hints of cucumber. Bake the cobalt blue cornflower into cakes and cookies or on top of pasta with them.

They give a spicy sweet taste that goes well with both sweet and sour cuisines.

16. Begonia

Botanical Name: Begonia x tuberosa

Wax and tuberous begonias are the most delicious and can be used for garnishing. You will experience a cucumber-like crunch in succulent petals with a citrus flavor.

Add them to fish salads and veggies or chop them in Panzanella. They are one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Check out 30 Stunning Types of Rex Begonia Varieties here

17. Scented Geraniums

Botanical Name: Pelargonium species

Lemon-scented germanium possesses lemon-scented blooms. They come in pink and pastel shades and offer citrus-spicy fragrances. Add fresh flowers to desserts and drinks, or freeze them in ice cubes.

It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Follow the 6 Quick Tips to Keep Geraniums Blooming here

18. Perennial Phlox

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Botanical Name: Phlox paniculata

Perennial phlox gives a mild spicy flavor that tastes great in fruit salads. The blooms vary from red-purple to pink, which makes it one of the most colorful Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Love purple? Here are the Best Purple Succulents

19. Evening Primrose

Botanical Name: Oenothera biennis

The buds can be eaten raw or cooked. Petals and seeds are also edible. It gives a citrusy, honey-like flavor to cakes, cookies, pavlovas, and shortbread.

20. Elderflower

outdoorapothecary

Botanical Name: Sambucus spp.

The clusters of heavily-scented white elderflowers are a sweet treat that taste like grapes. They are added to wine and topped on pancakes or fritters. It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Here are the Best Weeds with White Flowers

21. Daylily

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Botanical Name: Hemerocallis spp.

Daylilies are loved in Asian cuisines in both fresh and dried forms. All flower parts are edible – you can also use young shoots, add them to salads, or boil the tubers like potatoes.

22. Daisy

Botanical Name: Bellis perennis

Daisy blooms can be eaten from the moment the buds develop to the time they wilt. The buds are less bitter than the open flowers.

You can also pickle them as you do with dandelion buds to make ‘capers.’ Toss the blooms on cottage cheese, salads, and spinach dip. It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Note: Montauk daisies (Nipponanthemum nipponicum), Shasta (Leucanthemum x superbum), and Gerber (Gerbera spp.) are not true daisies and are not edible.

Here are the Best Daisy Like Flowers

23. Dandelion

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Botanical Name: Taraxacum Officinalis

Young dandelion flowers have a sweet, honey-like flavor, but mature blooms taste bitter. You can eat them raw or steam the flowers, or add them to salads.

It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Have a look at the 33 Weeds with Yellow Flowers here

24. Dame’s Rocket

Botanical Name: Hesperis matronalis

Also known as Sweet Rocket or Dame’s Violet, the deep lavender or pink-to-white flowers are edible but bitter in taste.

You can add blooms to salads, and young leaves can be added to greens. It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Note: Don’t get confuse this flower with an herb known as Rocket.

Check out the Best Vines with Purple Flowers here

25. Dahlia

Botanical Name: Dahlia pinnata

Dahlia’s flavor and textures can differ greatly depending on the conditions and soil they were grown in. The taste range from water chestnut to a spicy apple or carrot.

These are undoubtedly among the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Find Are Dahlias Deer Resistant here

26. Cosmos

Botanical Name: Cosmos sulphureus and C. caudatus

All cosmos are not edible; you can go with Cosmos sulphureus and C. caudatus. They have a lettuce-like flavor at first that turns sweet and fruity as you chew more.

Here are Beautiful Shrubs and Bushes with Red Berries

27. Coneflower

Botanical Name: Echinacea spp.

The blooms and buds are edible, while stems and leaves can be consumed raw. Mostly they are harvested for herbal teas. Many people add echinacea root to chicken soup.

It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

28. Chrysanthemum

Botanical Name: Chrysanthemum spp.

The elegant classic flowers taste good in soup, fish dishes, salads, stir-fries, egg dishes, sandwiches, potatoes, and chowder, making them one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Choose the Best Chrysanthemum Varieties here

29. Citrus Flowers

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All blooms of the citrus genus are edible and have a similar taste. Since these are Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food, add them to desserts, cocktails, crab plates, cold soups, Soufflé, ice cream, and sweets.

30. Anise Hyssop

Botanical Name: Agastache foeniculum

The flowers have a licorice flavor with floral hints. Toss the blooms on soup, salads, pasta, or rice dishes. It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Here are Beautiful Bushes with Pink Flowers

31. Bee Balm

practicalselfrelian

Botanical Name: Monarda didyma

You can eat the calyx and petals by slicing and cooking them. If you want something herb-like, then use petals. These are Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food, and can be a great addition to salsa, bread, jam, tea, cocktails, and cookies.

32. Berries’ Flower

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You can eat flowers of blueberries (Vaccinium spp.), mulberries (Morus alba), and strawberries (Fragaria spp.) It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Here are Winter Flowering Shrubs That Look Good In Winter Garden

33. Bougainvillea

Botanical Name: Bougainvillea spp.

You can eat the fresh flower bracts of bougainvillea salads, add to batter, in drinks, and for garnishing. Be careful of the thorns while picking the blossoms.

34. Borage

lavenderand

Botanical Name: Borago officinalis

The star-shaped blue blooms are Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food and are used as garnish, vegetables, and dried herbs in various dishes and beverages. It tastes like sweet cucumber, and its leaves are edible too.

Tip: Add them with cucumber and tomato in a vinaigrette.

Here are Flowers that are Vegetables

35. Calendula

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Botanical Name: Calendula spp.

These ornamental, medicinal blooms bring a pop of color to dishes and give a unique flavor like saffron. Use the blossoms to infuse butter and oils, or add them to salads, fish, and paella.

36. Carnations

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Botanical Name: Dianthus caryophyllus

One of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food, Steep these carnations in wine, add in candies, or decorate the cake with them. The blooms emit a clove or nutmeg-like scent.

You may find it interesting to know that carnations are one of the secret ingredients used in making Chartreuse, a French liquor since the 17th century.

Here are Pretty Pink Houseplants

37. Camellia

Botanical Name: Camellia spp.

The sweet, ornamental flowers make a pretty garnish for fruit salads and desserts. Candy the petals to dress cakes, pastries, cookies, and other confectioneries.

38.  Chicory

Botanical Name: Chicorum intybus

The blue-purple flowers open for one day and are gone the next; the bitter-tasting blooms can be a great addition to salads or veggies, making them Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Learn about the Best Blue Fruits here

39. Forget-Me-Not

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Botanical Name: Myotis spp.

The flowers give a mild floral bitter taste. They can be candied or used for desserts. You can also use them to garnish jellies or any sweet of your choice, which makes them one of the most versatile Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

40. Fuchsia

shutterstock/Tatiana SG

Botanical Name: Fuchsia spp.

Fuchsia blooms taste great and are Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food. You can eat berries and leaves as well. They give a mildly acidic flavor.

Here are the Best Outdoor Indirect Sunlight Plants for Containers & Shade Gardens

41. Forsythia

Botanical Name: Forsythia spp.

The vibrant yellow blooms have a mild floral flavor that does not overpower anything. Add them to flavored honey, syrup, infused oils, jams, and jellies, or toss them on salads.

42. Gardenia

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Botanical Name: Gardenia spp.

Gardenia produces honey-sweet blooms that can be candied, pickled, or battered and fried like fritters. These are Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food, so add them to infused honey, whipped cream, in ice-cream, or stir-fries.

Learn about Growing Gardenias in Pots here

43. Gladiolus

Botanical Name: Gladiolus spp.

The great edible flowers of gladiolus taste like romaine lettuce; use them in salads, soup, or sandwiches. You can use the bold color in tuna, egg, chicken, cheese, or anything.

44. Hollyhock

Botanical Name: Alcea spp.

Eliminate the seeds in the center and add the flower to cocktails, salads, and desserts, or decorate the cheese plate as these are excellent Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Here are the Best Types of Colorful Flowers

45. Hawthorn

Botanical Name: Crataegus monogyna

You can eat young blooms and hawthorn flower buds but avoid old brown blossoms. They have the same taste as crabapple flowers and improve your health while flavoring your food.

46. Honeysuckle

Botanical Name: Lonicera spp.

The edible honeysuckle flowers have sweet, floral notes, like honey. Infuse tea or honey and toss the blooms on salads or desserts since these are Edible Flowers To Flavor Your.

Check out the Most Fragrant Lilies here

47. Impatiens

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Botanical Name: Impatiens walleriana

The petals of this pretty bloom are crispy, and sweet Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food. You can add them to desserts, cocktails, sandwiches, and salads.

48. Hosta

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Botanical Name: Hosta spp.

Hosta blooms are edible and offer a mild, sweet, floral taste. You can use them for garnishing salads, sweets and also add them to cocktails.

Here are the Best Flowering Succulents To Grow Indoors & Outdoors

49. Lemon Verbena

flowermedia.com

Botanical Name: Aloysia citradora

The tiny cream-colored citrus-scented flowers taste good and give a floral hint; use them in desserts, herbal teas, custards, and cocktails since these are one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

50. Mint

gardeningsoul

Botanical Name: Mentha spp.

These blooms have a minty flavor with different overtones. The mint blooms and leaves taste amazing in Middle Eastern cuisines.

Learn How to Grow Mint in Small Space here

51. Banana Blossoms

Botanical Name: Musa paradisiaca

The purple-maroon torpedo-shaped flowers are known as banana hearts and are among the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

You can eat them raw or cooked. These blooms are used in Southeast Asian dishes.

52. Lilac

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Botanical Name: Syringa spp.

The lilac blooms spread a pungent, floral, sweet smell. You can candy the blooms or use them in desserts. They can also be a great addition to salads.

Here are Popular Flower Meanings

53. Lotus

bergenwatergardens.

Botanical Name:  Nelumbo nucifera

Both of them have similar looks and flavors. Discard the sepals and stamen, and stuff the honeydew-tasted bloom with cream cheese, pickled veggies, or dip.

These are excellent Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food. 

54. Magnolia

 

Botanical Name: Magnolia spp.

The dark blooms of magnolia taste bitter, while the white ones are more citrusy, and the pink flowers have notes of cardamom. You can pickle the petals as an alternative to ginger, as the blossoms have a ginger-like flavor.

Learn about the Difference Between Rhododendron and Magnolia here

55. Linden

Botanical Name: Tilia spp.

The Linden is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food. Pick the scented bloom soon after they open before turning brown and add them to cocktails or desserts.

56. Orchid

Botanical Name: Dendrobium species

These blooms can be found at stores in packaged form and sold for cooking. The blossoms are crisp and firm with the same flavor as the endive. Add them to salads and cocktails, or dip them in sugar for a sweet meal.

Check out How to Multiply Orchids here

57. Mallow

Botanical Name: Malva spp.

The mucilaginous leaves can greatly add to soups as a thickening agent. One of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food, their dainty petals can be consumed raw or cooked; add them to stir-fries, salads, or soups.

58. Passionflower

Botanical Name: Passiflora spp.

The alien-looking blooms have a sweet, tart flavor and are loved in tea. You can chop them on desserts or use them to garnish any sweet dish of your choice.

Here are the best Types of Passionflower Vines

59. Quince Flowers

Botanical Name: Cydonia oblonga

The flowers have a tart and astringent-like flavor, which makes them great to be added to cookies and jellies. It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

60. Rosemary

Botanical Name: Salvia rosmarinus

The blooms of this herb have a spicy, resinous flavor that is mild and more subtle than the foliage. Use the tiny blossoms fresh in dishes.

Check out the Secrets to Grow Fuller and Bushier Rosemary here

61. Squash

Botanical Name:  Cucurbita

You can batter and fry squash blooms and add them to salads, soup, or egg dishes. Flowers can be added to chicken cuisines as well since these are great Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

62. Sweet Alyssum

Botanical Name: Lobularia maritime

The clusters of yellow, white, purple, or pink four-petaled blooms are delicious and give a sweet peppery flavor. They make a great garnish in soups, desserts, and salads.

It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

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63. Snapdragon

Botanical Name: Antirrhinum spp.

A great Edible FlowersTo Flavor Your Food, the Snapdragon is a great option to add colors to your cuisine.

64. Sweet William

Botanical Name: Dianthus barbatus

Sweet William produces spicy-flavored blooms that go well with dessert and savory cuisines. You can candy them and add flowers to salads, cocktails, and soups.

It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

Here are the Best Vines and Climbers with Red Flowers

65. Sweet Woodruff

furigheddagardeni

Botanical Name: Galium odoratum

It has a hay-like mild flavor and bitter taste. You can use the blooms with tea and sprinkle them on sandwiches or salads.

66. Yucca

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Botanical Name: Yucca bachata

The flowers of all species in the genus are edible. In Mexico, the blooms are used in chicken and egg dishes, while in El Salvador, it is famous in egg cuisines, which makes it one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

The blossoms have a mild sweetness with an asparagus-like taste.

Note: All parts of the plant except the fruits of some species are poisonous.

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67. Zinnia

Botanical Name: Zinnia elegans

A great option among Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food, the bright yellow, red, orange, or magenta blooms taste mildly bitter.

Use the petals moderately or candy them to mellow the bitterness.

68. Pineapple Guava

xeraplants.com

Botanical Name: Feijoa sellowians

The sweet-smelling, pink-white edible blooms with red stamens appear in the spring. The flavor is sweet, like a fresh pickled ripe papaya or melon. You can add them to salads and ice creams.

Learn Making a Guava bonsai here

69. Garden Sorrel

Botanical Name: Rumex acetosa

The blooms have a tart, lemon-like flavor. Use them on pizza, salads, sauces, in cucumber salads. It is one of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

70. Water Lily

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Botanical Name: Nymphaeaceae

White water lily is edible, and its young, unfurling leaves can be consumed raw or cooked. Raw leaves can be added to soups or stews and are considered some of the best Edible Flowers To Flavor Your Food.

You can boil and roast the rhizome tubers like potatoes too.

Here are Miniature Water Lily Varieties for a Container Water Garden

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