Chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemum morifolium · Edible flower

40 pairings

The chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium) is a daisy-family flowering plant whose dried and fresh blossoms — known in Chinese as jú huā (菊花) — are steeped into a pale, honeyed herbal infusion and used in East Asian cooking. Mildly floral and faintly bittersweet, the flower is more often drunk than chewed, prized as a cooling, fragrant tisane.

Picking a good onedrag

Whole pale heads, honey and hayBrown dust, damp, no scent

Shop freshAn in-date food-grade tin; ju hua cha is an everyday drink. Daisy-family, so ragweed reactors can react to the tea, and handling the fresh plant all day can rash the hands.Everyday best

Where it came fromA grocer's food aisle, labelled for brewing

The headsColour going straw, most heads still whole

How they crushCrushes easily but still holds the shape of a flower

Smell in the bagHay clear, the honey note quieter behind it

What to look for, from whole pale heads, honey and hay to brown dust, damp, no scent.

Preparing