Not Just For Beer: Cooking With Hops
Hops are famous in the world of beer, but did you know you can also cook with the stalks, leaves, and flowers of this easy to grow vine? Over at the Bon Appétit blog, Ian Knauer has some tips for growing and cooking with hops.
Knauer was told not to expect any hops within the first year of planting cuttings, but vines burst to life in the rich soil and ample sun of his family farm, and he was able to harvest a gallon of hops.
Although he was primarily growing the plants for making homebrewed beer, he also experimented with eating the tender shoots — which sound reminiscent of asparagus or fiddlehead ferns — and the pungent flowers, which he compares to basil flowers. The article includes a recipe for a simple bruschetta made with tomato, onion and hop flowers.
• Read the article & get the recipe: Hopped Up: Cooking with a Brewmaster’s Best Friend at Bon Appétit
Have you ever grown or cooked with hops?
Related: Beer Guide: What Are Hops?
(Images: Bon Appetit/Ian Knauer)