With its delicate oniony flavor, homemade chive blossom vinegar is perfect for salad dressings and marinades. Plus, it’s super easy to make!
Chive blossoms are the little pinkish/purplish aromatic puffball-looking flowers that appear at the end of chive stalks in the late spring. And, the best part is that these blossoms aren’t just good eats for the bees! You can enjoy them too.
Fast Facts About Chives
The blossoms look like single flower heads, but they are actually clusters of many tiny flowers called florets.
They contain vitamin K, choline, and folate, and have numerous health benefits.
They have anti-inflammatory properties and the ability to promote digestion.
If you don’t grow chives at home, you can usually find the blossoms in specialty grocery stores and farmers’ markets in May and June.
SUGGESTED TIP: If you can, make sure they’re grown organically. Like any other herbs you eat, you want them to be free of pesticides and contaminants.
How To Prep Chive Blossoms
- Wash the blossoms before using or eating them. Gently plunge the flowers into water several times, and swish them around.
- Repeat a few times and pat dry.
How To Enjoy Chive Blossoms
- Enjoy them fresh. Separate the flowers into florets and sprinkle them on salads or cooked dishes for a finishing touch.
- Infuse them into vinegar you can use in salad dressings and marinades.
- Dry or dehydrate them and store them in a glass jar for later use.
How To Make Chive Blossom Vinegar
So, there are two ways to make chive blossom vinegar. The quick method is to pour hot vinegar over the blossoms and steep for three days. The longer method (which I prefer and share below) is when you infuse the flowers in room-temperature vinegar for two weeks. This yields a more robust flavor and is worth the wait time.
How To Store Chive Blossom Vinegar
To keep your vinegar tasting best, store it away from light in your pantry or in a dark corner of a shelf or counter. It doesn’t need to be refrigerated and will last a long time!
However you choose to use them, enjoy this fun seasonal ingredient.
Chive Blossom Vinegar
Ingredients
- 3 cups fresh chive blossoms
- 4 cups white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Trim the blossoms from the stems. Gently rinse and pat dry.
- Loosely pack the blossoms into a quart-sized clean glass jar (no need to sterilize the jar first).
- Pour the vinegar over the chive blossoms until they are completely immersed in the liquid. You can use a spoon to push them down and make sure they are fully submerged.
- Tightly cover the jar with the lid. Store at room temperature, away from direct light and heat for 2 weeks.
- After 2 weeks, strain the infused invegar. Discard or compost the soent blossoms.
- Pour the vinegar into a clean glass jar and cover tightly with the lid.
- Enjoy! Use in salad dressings or marinades.