This a blog on edible flower orchids ?!! Yes indeed they are edible. Some varieties are edible and they are use in cake decorations and all sorts. The variety I got is dendrobrium and it is available to buy in garden centres. That is where I got mine from. I have some passion for edible flower growing growing borage  and eating them Using edible flowers Now I would like to make orchid tempura out of these flowers I have got.

A word of caution is never to eat shop or supermarket bought flowers no matter how edible there. As they have been sprayed with pesticides. Always from your own garden or buy from a supplier or farmers market where you know the grower that grew them for eating. It’s now end of November in London and I grew the orchids in a pot, they are now flowering. Who would have thought. I had this at the back of my mind that it’s winter no more writing blogs about gardening.

I am going to make fry them in a batter a bit like tempura.

Recipe tempura batter

(makes two cups of  batter do half it as it can be too much as a side dish for 3-4 person)

1 cup of plain flour (all purpose flour)

1 large size egg (I like free range ones)

one cup carbonated (sparkling) water

ice cubes to add to water so that to make it really cold

Some edble dendrobium orchids and some other types of vegetables like cubed carrot or broccoli florets to finish off the batter.

Method

Sift the flour so it makes the batter nice and light. Add the egg. Using a pair of chopsticks mixed the egg then water together. It keeps the batter light and airy. Put the ice cubes to cool down the sparkling water. Take them out as soon as it cool down.

Heat the deep fryer to 190 deg celcius. With the combination of ice cold batter and hot oil is the secret of making tempura which is light in texture.

Deep the orchids and the rest of the vegetable batter. Using a chopstick add them to the heated deep fryer. Fry till the batter becomes light yellow colour. Take them out and drain on some kitchen towel.