Pickled Evening Primrose Buds and Flowers is a modern British recipe for a classic method of preserving the wild food, evening primrose roots by chopping into pieces and preserving in vinegar. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Pickled Evening Primrose Buds and Flowers.
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The relatively inconspicuous plant opens its flowers shortly after sunset. Its sweet fragrance, reminiscent of wine, appeals to humans and insects alike. It was so popular in the late 17th century that European aristocracy had a romantic streak at times and invited people to an evening drink to enjoy this spectacle.
The petals, flower buds and seeds with their jasmine-like flavour are collected in the evening when their flavour is at its height to use for syrups, liqueurs or creamy desserts.
I never throw spent vanilla pods away and instead pack them into jars of sugar to make vanilla sugar. This recipe is an ideal way to use-up one of those spent vanilla pods.
Ingredients:
Enough evening primrose flower petals and flower buds to fill a small jar
100ml cider vinegar
50ml water
1 cinnamon stick
1 piece of spent vanilla pod
2 green cardamom pods pressed with the heel of your palm to crack
50g light brown sugar
Method:
Collect the flower buds and open flowers of the evening primrose. Please only pick a few buds and flowers per plant so that there are enough left for the moths and bees.
Leave them on a kitchen towel for approx. 30 minutes so that any inhabitants can still escape before you process them.
In the meantime, you can sterilize a jar with hot water. Combine vinegar, water and sugar in a saucepan with the spices. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 3 minutes. Take off the heat and set aside to cool slightly for 1 minute.
At this point, layer the flower buds and flower petals in a jar then pour over the cooled syrup. Immediately seal the jar with a vinegar-proof lid. Allow to cool then label and store in a cool, dark, place to mature for a few days before use.
The sweet and sour flower buds taste delicious with cheese, can be used as a garnish for dessert, or mixed into a salad or simply blend with cream cheese as a bread topping.
