The common evening primrose (Oenothera biennis) is originally at home on the American continents and has been used there for centuries both as food and in traditional medicine. In Europe, too, the fleshy roots of the plant were eaten. Nowadays, the versatility of the plant has been forgotten, and there are even reports that it is poisonous.
Not only can oil be made from the blossoms of the evening primrose, they are also a beautiful, edible decoration for salads and the like.
Edible parts of the evening primrose
Basically, almost all parts of the evening primrose can be used in the kitchen. A salad can be made from the young leaves or they are prepared as wild spinach, the flowers and flower buds serve as a tasty and distinctive decoration for salads, desserts, soups and other dishes. The root of the evening primrose, formerly known as "ham root" because of its reddish color, can be prepared like salsify.
evening primrose root
Evening primrose roots are usually peeled and then cooked in a strong meat broth. The finely sliced roots can then be dressed with salt, pepper, vinegar and oil and eaten as a salad. Alternatively, they can also be served as root vegetables in a classic white bechamel sauce. Evening primrose roots are collected in the first winter, i.e. before the first flowering of the biennial plant.
flowers and flower buds
The slightly sweet and spicy-tasting flowers of the evening primrose are suitable as an edible decoration, for example for colorful salads, as a soup ingredient or as blossom butter. When dried, they can also be added to tea blends. On the other hand, you can blanch the flower buds that have been harvested while they are still closed in vinegar and then soak them in oil - nicely packaged, by the way, a great gift.
Evening primrose as a remedy
Even better known than vegetables is the evening primrose as a remedy, because the flowers and seeds in particular contain a lot of gamma-linoleic acid, an essential amino acid. For this reason, evening primrose oil is mainly used externally for skin problems - above all neurodermatitis - while the flowers are used as an infusion or in the form of syrup for coughs and other respiratory tract infections.
tips
Incidentally, the seeds, which taste slightly nutty, can also be roasted lightly and without fat in a pan and mixed into your morning muesli as an ingredient.