- They taste like fresh grapes, but also like walnuts, peppers or green apples and intrigue chefs.
They are the balcony plants that embellish outdoor spaces such as the begonia, but at the same time they can be brought to the table.
So much so that six species are already found on the menus of starred restaurants.
They were identified by La Clarice Orto Sinergico, an Italian start-up from Perugia that deals with the cultivation and study of rare herbs for haute cuisine.
These are plants that belong to the genus of "succulents", or 'fats" with much more delicate flavors than the aromatic herbs widely used in the kitchen. The edible ones are the Sicilian sorrel with an acetate, watery and mineral taste; the sedum spectabile with succulent and crunchy leaves that taste like fresh grapes; the pink carpet (Cooper's crystalline grass) juicy, fresh and very mineral; the begonia with a vinegary and lemon flavor; the very crunchy haworthia that tastes like green pepper or apple; the houseleek with a nutty flavour.
"Our curiosity led us to taste balcony plants to understand which ones are edible, - explains Davide Narcisi, founder with his brother Diego of the start-up - we are already growing 20 of them which we have proposed to the fine dining restaurants we work with obtaining a positive response as they stimulate the creativity of chefs attracted by unknown but intriguing products for the notes they can bring to a dish".
Plants that are characterized by the high percentage of water, with flavors ranging from vinegary notes to those of fish, molluscs, fresh legumes or herbaceous hints.
What makes them unique, however, is the texture and minerality they add to the dish, they are used raw and their leaves are perfect for creating a salad, flavoring a meat or fish tartare or even for crunchiness in a fish soup.
Today totally unknown herbs, such as glasswort, sea fennel, oyster grass are found in supermarkets and used in home cooking, underlines Narcisi, and in the future we will also be able to easily find begonia and other plants that we never imagined we could eat.
