How to Cook With Roses and Make Rosewater

Culinary Flowers: Flavoring and Adorning Foods With Florals

Jul 6, 2008 Melody Rhodes

Rose cooking entails using delicate roses to flavor and garnish a variety of menu items.

Rose baking is nothing new, however. The practice of using roses in cooking dates back centuries. Roses, in fact, have been used extensively in Middle Eastern cuisines to enhance the taste of foods and beverages.

Using edible flowers for culinary endeavors is gaining a wider audience, and roses, with their subtle, sweet taste, make a pleasing recipe ingredient. Correspondingly, rose recipes have become popular.

Where to Find Rose Products

Rosewater, rose syrup, or rose liqueur can be obtained from specialty shops
Culinary roses can be found in gourmet markets
You can obtain packets of dried rose petals online that can be used in rose cooking

Growing Your own Edible Roses

Some people opt to grow their own roses. This is a good way to make sure the flowers haven’t been contaminated with chemicals or pesticides and ensures a supply of fresh rose petals on hand.

How to Make Your own Rosewater

To make your own rosewater, fill a pot with clean rose petals. Pour boiling water over and cover with a lid. Allow to stand. Place the cooled mixture in the refrigerator overnight. Strain. You'll have a beautifully colored liquid that you can use in recipes that call for the addition of rosewater.
Pour leftover liquid into ice cube trays and freeze. Store ice cubes in a plastic bag for future use. Thaw the cubes each time you need rose-flavored liquid.

Rose Cooking--Getting Started

Pick freshly opened flowers in the early morning or in the cool part of the day. Detach the petals and place them in a bowl or strainer and rinse well. When detaching rose petals, pull gently as they bruise easily.

Use your rose petals immediately for rose baking
Store extra petals in a plastic bag in the refrigerator
Spread rinsed petals on a clean towel to air dry. Store in a tin.

Rose recipes call for fresh or dried rose petals or for rosewater.

How to Cook With Roses

Rose cookery incorporates the characteristic rose flavor into a variety of foods

Sprinkle rose petals in salads
When making homemade jam, add rose petals to enhance flavor
Add crushed, dried rose petals to spice blends for flavoring either meat or sweet
Rosewater or rose infusion or syrup can be used to flavor whipped cream, fillings or icings, cakes, cookies, and pastries

Beautiful Rose Petal Soup

Decorate a chilled fruit soup with rose petals or place a rosebud in the center of a cream soup for rose petal soup.

Rose Decorations

Making candied rose petals is a facet of rose cooking that produces stunning decorations. Dip petals into egg white that has been whisked with 1 tbsp. of water, then dip petals into sugar. Allow the sugared rose petals to dry and use them to adorn cakes, muffins, or pastries.

Exotic and Delicious Rose Dessert Ideas

Rose infusion can be added when making homemade ice cream
Rose syrup is delicious drizzled over vanilla ice cream
Fill the center of a rose with whipped cream or ice cream for a show-stopping finale to any meal

Roses taste just as they smell so they make a tantalizing flavoring ingredient in rose baking. Trying recipes that call for the addition of rose petals or rosewater will result in wonderfully flavored menu items.

Roses offer us far more than just their beauty. Cooking with roses is an exciting way to add interest to meals.