10 edible plants to grow in your home for an exotic cooking
Add an exotic touch to your cooking by growing these 10 edible tropical plants. Not only will they bring unique flavors to your dishes, but they’ll also brighten up your home with a vegetal touch
1. The Curry tree - Murraya koenigii
The Murraya koenigii, also known as Indian curry tree, Curry leaf tree or Curry bush is an Indian edible plant belonging to the Rutaceae family. Beware, these names are misleading; the curry powder we commonly use is a blend of spices that does not contain Curry tree.
Growing it indoors in pots is a must in Europe. This aromatic exotic plant has small white flowers as well as fruits that develop almost all year round.
The fresh leaves of this aromatic plant should be picked only according to culinary needs. In fact, to keep the plant healthy, no more than 20% of the foliage should ever be harvested. They enhance the taste of dishes and give off a distinctive smell reminiscent of cumin when crumpled.
The leaves of the curry tree are best eaten fresh, as they only retain their fragrance for a short time once dried. The fruits of the curry tree, small shiny black berries, are edible when ripe. However, be sure to remove the seed before eating, which is poisonous.
Cooking tip: incorporate fresh leaves into sauces or sauté in oil before adding the rest of the preparation.
2. Vanilla plant - Vanilla planifolia
Vanilla plant is an epiphytic orchid (uses other trees to cling to with its aerial roots) that offers magnificent greenish-yellow flowers. After 4 to 5 years of growth, it also produces aromatic green pods about 15 centimeters long. At this stage, they are odorless. It’s then, during the ripening process, that they develop their distinct aroma.
Harvesting should take place when the pods are still green and their tips are just starting to turn yellow. Then come the many steps involved in preparing them, making this one of the most expensive condiments in the world. Preparing vanilla beans isn’t complicated, but it does take time:
- Scalding: place the pods in a basket, then plunge them gradually into hot water (64°) for 3 minutes to stop them vegetating.
- Steaming: place them in a wooden crate, surrounded by a blanket, for 12 to 16 hours to allow them to sweat. This is when they take on their brown color.
- Sun-drying: place the vanilla beans on a blanket in the sun for a minimum of 3 hours a day, for around 6 weeks. This process removes all their water. Collect them each evening and store them in a wooden crate overnight.
- Drying in the shade: slow down the drying process by placing them in the shade on a rack for one or two months.
- Ripening: place the vanilla beans in a wooden crate for around 4 months, checking their moisture content once a week and removing any that may have gone mouldy. It’s at this stage that the aroma will reveal itself.
Vanilla beans can be used in a variety of dishes such as desserts, drinks, and even savory dishes. Want to grow your own vanilla while brightening up your home with a plant with pretty flowers? Buy a Vanilla plant on line directly from our store!</p
3. Tamarind tree - Tamarindus indica
The Tamarind tree also known as Tamarind, Tamarindo or Indian date is edible tropical plantnative to Madagascar. It has small yellow flowers mottled with red giving off a delicious scent. After 7 to 10 years, fruiting begins and the flowers can be seen transforming into woody pods enclosing shiny seeds surrounded by a fibrous pulp.
Pods can be picked as they start to turn brown, and keep for several months. The seeds inside have a tart, sweet flavor resembling dates. In England, the pod is used in the recipe for the famous Worcestershire sauce, while in India, it’s used more as a spice in curries.
Tamarind pulp is versatile, and can be used to make jams, sorbets, drinks and fruit pastes. Be careful, however, to consume it in moderation, as it can have laxative effects. Tamarindus indica leaves can be eaten raw or cooked, and the flowers can be eaten in salads. Finally, by roasting the seeds, you can use them to make coffee.
4. Roselle - Hibiscus sabdariffa
Roselle, also known as Red sorrel, Jamaica sorrel, or roselle, is the only edible species of Hibiscus. It has magnificent flowers appearing as a corolla of 5 yellow to pink petals as well as a dark red or green calyx and calicule. As well as being a decorative houseplant, it also has culinary uses.
Once the flowers have wilted and the calyxes and calicula have dried, these offer a tangy flavor. Roselle calyces are used in sauces, condiments and even jams. Once cooked, they can also be eaten as vegetables. As for the young shoots and leaves, they can be eaten raw or cooked, with a taste similar to that of common sorrel. Finally, the fruits of Hibiscus sabdariffa are used to make the famous exotic drink: bissap or in fruit salads and pastries.
Roselle is an exotic plant for the kitchen that’s both decorative, but also very useful for adding an exotic touch to all your dishes. Buy a Hibiscus sabdariffa on line now !
5. Cashew tree - Anarcadium occidentale
The Cashew tree is native to South America. It has pretty white flowers tinged with pink that come to transform into a “double fruit”. The cashew apple and the cashew nut. The cashew apple is a soft, pear-shaped stalk, yellow or red in color, while the cashew nut, attached to the cashew apple, consists of a shell and a kidney-shaped kernel. One cashew apple can provide only one nut, which explains the high price of cashews.
Both of these exotic fruits are edible. The sweet, juicy cashew apple can be used fresh, dried, or cooked to prepare jams, juices, or syrups. Cashew nuts, harvested after they have fallen, require a preparation process including removal of the shells, sun-drying and baking before they can be eaten. They are mainly eaten as an aperitif, but can also accompany salads and meats. In addition to the nuts, the young twigs and leaves of the cashew tree are also edible, and can be eaten cooked like vegetables. A true edible exotic plant.
6. Ti-plant - Cordyline terminalis
Ti-plant, also known as Palm lily or Cabbage palm, is native to Asia and Oceania, with a strong presence in Hawaii which explains its name. Appreciated for its lush, colorful foliage, Hawaiian spinach is a graphic plant. As well as adding a decorative touch to your home, this plant can also be eaten.
Hawaiians eat the rhizomes equally well as a starch, sweet or alcoholic beverage. You too can enjoy these rhizomes by purchasing a Ti-plant plant, and creative cooking is yours!
7. Lemongrass - Cympobogon citratus
Lemongrass, also known as West Indian lemongrass or Indian verbena, is a condiment plant with a strong lemon scent. Harvested from May to October, lemongrass leaves need to be crumpled to bring out their full fragrance. They are ideal for making infusions or accompanying Asian dishes.
The most tender bulbous part is used in cooking, notably to make lemongrass chicken or lemongrass-fried shrimps. To pick it, cut flush with the ground, just above the roots. Lemongrass is used in curries, marinades, broths and salads, but can also be used to spice up desserts and other pastries. It keeps for a few days in the fridge, however, this edible plant best eaten freshly picked.
Cooking tip: add Madagascar lemongrass at the end of cooking to preserve all its aromas.
8.Turmeric - Curcuma longa
Turmeric, native to India, is a root belonging to the Zingiberaceae family. Used as a powder or cut into strips, Turmeric is a versatile spice. It is often called “Indian saffron” because of its similarity in color to saffron. Harvested in September, turmeric powder is obtained by boiling, peeling, drying and then blending the rhizomes.
Curcuma longa is used to spice up dishes such as dahls, curries, and relishes. Add it at the end of cooking to retain its slightly peppery, pungent flavor, a perfect match for meats and vegetables. It’s also used as a natural coloring agent thanks to its magnificent orange color.
9. Ginger - Zingiber officinale
Ginger, native to Southeast Asia, can be used in a variety of ways: powdered, as a rhizome cut into strips, or fresh. Its slightly spicy taste enhances a variety of dishes, both sweet and savoury. Used abundantly in Japanese cuisine, ginger can be adapted to marinades, broths, stews, juices, syrups and even pastries. A few pinches in a chocolate cake reduces the amount of sugar used, thanks to its spicy flavor. This brings out the taste of the ingredients more, especially the sugar or salt.
Fresh ginger can be stored for several weeks in the fridge, wrapped in cling film and then in a storage bag. In addition to the aforementioned uses, ginger also goes very well with pumpkin pie or brownie. Finally, it’s not uncommon to candy it to enjoy it like a sweet. A perfect Edible plant. !
10. Red torch ginger - Etlingera elatior
The Red torch ginger, native to Southeast Asia, is not only a spectacular exotic flower it is also an edible flower. It is both cultivated as a food and as a spice. Its distinctive feature is that everything about this plant can be eaten. Its rhizomes are used to make curry and can be eaten in salads. Its flowers can also be eaten raw in salads. And the fruits of the porcelain rose, once ripe, can also be eaten. In Europe, Etlingera elatior is a tropical indoor plants.
In Asia, the leaves of the Red torch ginger are mixed with other spices (ginger or betel) to make infusions.
<p>In addition to beautifully decorating your home, Etlingera elatior will also add a new dimension to your kitchen! Buy one of the most beautiful tropical flowers now.</p>
Grow these edible plants in your kitchen and make delicious exotic recipes! Not to mention that they’ll also bring a touch of greenery and freshness to your home. Try these varieties for tasty, exotic cuisine!
