Every spring, herb gardeners all over the country let their chives bolt and then quietly compost the blossoms. That’s a shame. Those soft purple pom-poms are one of the most useful things growing in your backyard right now, and they’ll be gone in a few weeks.
Every year, I anxiously await those beautiful chive blossoms to appear on my chive plant, and here’s what to do with them before the season passes.
What Are Chive Blossoms?
The chive is the smallest member of the allium family, which includes onions, garlic, and leeks. It has a flavour similar to onion with a hint of garlic, but milder than either. In late spring and early summer, the plant produces small purple-pink flowers that grow in a spherical, puffball-like cluster at the ends of the stems.
The blossoms taste like the chive itself: oniony, slightly garlicky, and gentle enough to use raw. Every part of the chive plant is edible, including the blossoms.
Chives have been cultivated in Europe since the Middle Ages and were later brought to the Americas by European colonists. By the Victorian and Edwardian eras, edible flowers were very much in fashion. Victorian banquets regularly featured dishes adorned with edible flowers, and afternoon teas were graced with floral-infused cakes and pastries. Chive blossoms would have been familiar to any kitchen gardener of the period.
Why Bother?
Two reasons. Flavour and timing.
The flavour is more delicate than the stem. You get the savoury, allium quality without the sharpness. They work well raw, where a chopped chive can sometimes feel aggressive.
The timing is the reason to act now. Chive blossoms are perennial, blooming in spring and summer before dying back in winter. Miss the window and you’ll wait another year. Harvest them when they’re fully open and before they start to fade.
How to Use Chive Blossoms in the Kitchen
Scatter the florets
This is the easiest use. Separate the individual florets from the flower head and use them as a garnish or to add a delicate onion flavour to soups, cream sauces, potatoes, and egg dishes. They look beautiful on devilled eggs, a simple omelette, or a bowl of vichyssoise.
Fold them into soft cheese
Mix the purple florets into goat cheese for a simple, pretty spread. Serve with crackers or sliced baguette. Also works well stirred into cream cheese or ricotta.
Make compound butter
Soften good butter and fold in a handful of whole or separated blossoms. Roll in parchment, refrigerate, and slice as needed. Use it on grilled steak, roasted chicken, steamed new potatoes, or corn on the cob.
Toss them into salads
The whole blossom holds up well in a green salad. It adds colour and a quiet savoury note without overpowering anything else in the bowl. Find recipe below.
Make chive blossom vinegar
This is the best way to extend the season well past the bloom. Pack chive blossoms into a clean jar, cover completely with white vinegar, and leave in a cool, dark place for about two weeks. The vinegar turns a lovely shade of pink. Strain out the blossoms, bottle the vinegar, and use it anywhere you’d use a mild vinegar.
A mild clear vinegar like champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar works best. Avoid dark vinegars, since the whole point is the beautiful pink colour. Use it drizzled over roasted vegetables or potato salad, in place of red wine vinegar in a vinaigrette, or stirred into ricotta and served with toast. It also makes a lovely hostess gift.
A Note on Harvesting
Chive blossoms are rarely found in grocery stores but can be sourced at farmers’ markets and high-end stores during their season. If you grow chives yourself, harvest when the blossoms are fully open. Cut at the base of the stem.
Before using, rinse under cool running water. Check carefully for small insects that like to shelter inside the florets. A brief soak in cool water helps dislodge anything hiding in there. Pat dry gently.
Stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator, they should stay fresh for up to a week. They can also be frozen for up to two months.
The Edwardian Connection
The cooks at Downton Abbey would have had chives in the kitchen garden without question. Mrs. Patmore would have used the stems regularly in soups and sauces. Whether she bothered with the blossoms is harder to say, but the Edwardian enthusiasm for edible flowers and seasonally preserved condiments makes it entirely plausible that a skilled cook would have tucked them into butter or vinegar without a second thought.
Using what the garden offers, when it offers it, is not a modern idea. It is simply sensible.
Try these Recipes
Recipes to Try
- Chive Blossom Vinegar
- Chive Blossom Salad
- Chive Blossom Compound Butter
- Chive Blossom Goat’s Cheese Spread
