Daylilies for dinner?

The American Hemerocallis Society is a great source of daylily information. Whether you're a member or not, you can sign up for their free monthly E-news newsletter at http://www.daylilies.org/ENews.html (sorry, I can't seem to get links to work properly on blogger lately!)

I'm reprinting here an article from the latest AHS E-news about edible daylilies ... and will confess that I've never eaten them myself. Yet. The blossoms are just too beautiful to pluck and eat! Perhaps I'll try it this year with some of my least-favorite varieties ...

Question: We are organic farmers with a permaculture food forest in Santa Barbara. We would like to include daylilies in our designs and wonder if anyone knows which are the tastiest daylilies (buds and petals).
RESPONSE: I love this question because whenever I give a presentation about daylilies I talk about eating them, and everyone is amazed. I used to own a restaurant and before the evening meal, I would go home and pick some daylilies and use them in the salads. It was wonderful for interesting conversation.

It sounds as if you already know that daylilies are edible. But for those readers who don't realize it, they are delicious! Dr. Darrel Apps, a talented daylily hybridizer, reported that he encountered a wide variety of food products made from daylilies, including sugared daylily flowers, in a shopping center in Seoul, South Korea. The islanders told him that they dig up shoots and eat them like asparagus in spring and then eat the buds and flowers later in the season. This information and other fascinating facts can be found in one of my favorite daylily books called The Delightful, Delicious Daylily by Peter Gail.

One can buy bags of daylily buds and flowers in many Asian food stores in the U.S. Or you can harvest your own. We have a friend who went out every night and picked the daylily flowers and let them dry out. Then in the morning when he made himself an omelet, he would throw some of the dried petals in. He said it was not only beautiful but also tasty and healthy.

You asked about the flavor. The fresh buds have been compared to green beans and asparagus. Since flavor is influenced by scent, the more fragrant daylily cultivars may taste sweeter than those without a strong scent. It has been said that dried daylily buds have a mild beef broth flavor. Dr. Apps reports that red flowers are bitter, while the yellow, orange, and pastel flowers are not and are the tastiest.

In the late fall and early spring the white tuberous roots are crisp like water chestnuts. By scrubbing the roots and slicing them, they can be used in stir-fried dishes instead of water chestnuts.

Daylily buds and blossoms have almost as much protein as spinach, more Vitamin A than string beans, and about the same amount of Vitamin C as orange juice! The flowers are good just buttered and simmered.

The recipe in The Delightful, Delicious Daylily is so simple for buttered daylilies. You just take 8 daylily blossoms, 1 cup chicken broth, 3 tablespoons butter, and salt and pepper to taste. You simmer the daylilies for 4-5 minutes in the chicken broth. Drain, then add butter, salt, and pepper, and serve! Are you going to try it??

Some people do warn about potential disadvantages of eating daylilies. Eating too many fresh daylilies can create a mild laxative effect and raw green buds may cause throat irritation. If you collect daylilies from along the roadsides, they could be contaminated by automobile pollutants and/or herbicides and might cause upset stomachs or other problems.

Have fun experimenting with eating daylilies. It is delightful to try them out with your friends and neighbors. My favorite method is simply adding a fresh daylily to a salad and watching people to see if they have the "nerve" to eat it. More information can be learned from the following book: The Delightful, Delicious Daylily by Peter Gail Goosefoot Acres Press P.O. Box 18016 Cleveland Ohio 44118-0016