Pineapple sage

Salvia elegans · Herb

40 pairings

Pineapple sage (Salvia elegans) is a Mexican and Guatemalan shrubby sage whose soft, bright-green leaves smell of ripe pineapple when brushed or bruised, and whose slender scarlet-red tubular flowers are edible and sweet. The fragrant leaves and vivid flowers are used fresh in desserts, fruit salads, cordials, teas and cocktails, and the plant is a magnet for hummingbirds and bees in the late-summer and autumn garden.

Picking a good onedrag

Just cut, leaves flat, flowers openFlowers browned, leaves limp and dark

Market freshUse it the day you buy it. Whole scarlet flowers over fruit and desserts, torn leaves in late or off the heat, or steeped - the pineapple cooks off fast.Everyday best

Where it came fromA grower you know, growing it to be eaten and not sprayed

Leaf and stemA leaf or two limp low down, stem still firm

The scarlet flowersThe oldest tubes shrivelling, the rest still bright

Brush a leafClearly fruity, but you have to bruise it harder

What to look for, from just cut, leaves flat, flowers open to flowers browned, leaves limp and dark.

Preparing