When it comes to food, flowers are usually used more for garnish than for flavor. After all, no one expects them to do more than look pretty. Then along comes dried hibiscus flower, the ultimate floral overachiever.
While blossoms like nasturtiums are scattered across fancy restaurant dishes for just for appearance, hibiscus is a herbal heavyweight. When the dried petals are steeped on hot (or cold) water, they release a tart, almost-cranberry like flavor and a deep red-violet color that looks more like cabernet than chamomile. If you’ve ever tried the hippie-ish Red Zinger tea, you’re enjoying tangy hibiscus, blended with ingredients that include peppermint, rose hips, and wild cherry bark.
The petals come from the tropical hibiscus flower, often labeled as “flor de Jamaica” in Hispanic markets and sold in the spice section. You’ll also see it in Middle Eastern grocery stores labeled as "karkady." In the West Indies, it’s often called "sorrel," but don’t confuse it with the leafy green.
But though this fuchsia infusion is delicious iced or hot with just a bit of sweetener, there’s no need to stop there. That berry-tart flavor is delicious in recipes, too (you can even add it to enchiladas). Here are just a few ideas.
Just mixing iced hibiscus tea with sugar makes a floral and highly refreshing drink on its own, and you can also add it to your favorite tropical punch for a tart new dimension. Many recipes for agua fresca, the refreshing Mexican beverage, include hibiscus in the ingredients alongside citrus juice and sugar. You can even try swapping it in for the water in this Pimm’s punch.
The sauce will keep for three days (pour it into a squeeze bottle), which is plenty of time to drizzle on ice cream, chocolate flan, meringue cookies, or in a rum cocktail.
Most pavlovas start with a snow-white, crispy meringue base—crunchy, but not that delicious. Use dried hibiscus flowers to infuse that meringue with some subtle cranberry-like flavor while giving it a gorgeous swirl of color. Once they’re blitzed into a fine powder, hibiscus flowers are also a great way to add some extra color to the plate.
Much like the tannins in red wine, the tannins in hibiscus tea make it a great choice for a marinade, tenderizing beef or lamb while adding boatloads of flavor. Bet your garden-variety roses can't do that.
