Daylily Flower Vegetable Lo Mein
This classic Chinese food takeaway dish is given a delicious new flourish with the presence of a tasty wild edible. Daylily flower vegetable lo mein is the wild comfort food you never knew you needed, with the drama and beauty given from the whole daylily garnish. Cooked daylily petals add a delicate, slightly savory, peach-like element that mixes well with the bell pepper, Napa cabbage, water chestnuts, and other vegetables. Glamourous wild comfort food might be the correct genre for this stunning dish- whatever it is, go pick a few blossoms and dig in.
Click for a Print-Friendly Recipe
Identifying Daylily Flowers
Disclaimer- use caution when foraging wild edibles, and always be certain of your identification. While I assume responsibility for the accuracy of the information provided on this site, I can’t be responsible for the accuracy of your information. Consult multiple websites, books and local experts, and when it doubt, do without.
Summer brings about the daily blooming of the bright orange, sometimes wild daylily bordering gardens and wooded areas. Despite their name and appearance, daylily is not actually a lily. True lilies are in the Lilium genus, while daylilies fall under the name Hemerocallis. The daylily has edible tubers, shoots, buds, and blossoms, whereas many species of lily are poisonous (sometimes even deadly). While the flowers of the two plants look similar, there is an easy way to tell the two apart. Look beneath the orange blooms to the stems- the stems of the daylily will be long and graceful, without leaves, and protrude forth from a bed of long, thick, grass-like leaves on the ground. The true lily will, in contrast, have a stem studded with sharp, lance-like leaves down the entire length.
If you avoid misidentifying daylilies for lilies, you should be in the clear. These towering flowers were imported from Asia, where they are more commonly consumed for food. If you’re not inclined to try the flowers, the buds could also be used in this vegan daylily flower recipe- add them about the time you add the mushrooms.
Feeling Floral? Try One of these Flower and Flower-Shaped Recipes!
- Chilled Lemony Wood Sorrel Soup
- Spring Garlic Mustard & Dandelion Green Vegan Frittatas
- Bouquet of Roses Beet & Radish Salad Pizza
- Spring Stinging Nettle Pasta with Vegan Parmesan
- Milkweed Mushroom Moo Shu
- Delicata Rounds with Lemon and Miso Dipping Sauce
Vegetable Lo Mein
In it’s essence, this recipe really is a simple and versatile version of veggie lo mein; the daylilies, while delicious, are totally optional, and all the vegetables could be subbed out for any of your favorites. Vegetable lo mein is a staple of my childhood- the soft (usually egg) noodles covered in savory sauce, with some amount of vegetables- although usually not very many from the Chinese takeout place. I was fairly shocked when I went out to the West Coast for college that I didn’t often see lo mein on menus- instead, the proponent noodle dish was chow mein. Having had both, I can say I’m happy eating either one- but now I make them myself to avoid the egg noodles. The other benefit of self-made lo mein is that I get to choose what and how many vegetables join the noodles, and I tend to like a lot. This particular dish has half an entire head of Napa cabbage- plus, the daylily flowers of course.
Making Daylily Flower Vegetable Lo Mein
Fortunately, making daylily flower lo mein isn’t hard. Since daylily flowers only blossom for one day (the flower you see tomorrow will be from a new bud), you aren’t harming the plants by picking them. I always wait until the late afternoon, so no one misses getting to see their beauty before plucking them. Give them a rinse, and pull apart some of the flowers. Leave a couple intact for garnish- they can be eaten raw as well, so it’s totally safe- but set the others aside. Make the lo mein by first cooking your noodles- spaghetti noodles work great- mixing the sauce, and then sautéing your veggies. Add the cooked noodles to the vegetables, and toss in the pre-mixed sauce. Cook the daylily flowers for just a minute to wilt them- they won’t need more than that. Serve warm topped with fresh whole flowers.
Daylily Flower Vegetable Lo Mein
Ingredients
- ½ lb. dried spaghetti
- Vegetable oil, for cooking
- 1 small knob of ginger, minced
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- ½ small onion, diced
- 5 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 1 bell pepper, sliced
- 8 oz. can of water chestnuts, drained
- ½ head of Napa cabbage, cored and chopped thinly
- 10-20 daylily blossoms, petals separated, keeping a few whole for garnish (optional)
- 3 scallions, chopped
- 2 tsp. sriracha
- 2 tsp. hoisin
- 1 tsp. mirin
- 2 tbsp. soy sauce
- 1 tbsp. sesame oil
Instructions
- Put a large pot of water on the stove and cook the pasta as directed. Add the sriracha, hoisin, mirin, soy sauce, sesame oil, and one tablespoon of water to a jar and shake well to combine. Set aside.
- While the pasta is cooking, heat a small amount of vegetable oil in a large skillet. Add the ginger, garlic, and onion, and sauté for a few moments until fragrant. Next add the mushrooms and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Add the bell peppers and water chestnuts, sautéing until the bell peppers have softened a little. Once the pasta is done or almost done, add the napa cabbage and cook for a minute or two, stirring frequently, until the cabbage is reduced in volume.
- 3. Drain the pasta and add to the stir-fry, along with the prepared sauce. Toss well to combine for a couple minutes, making sure all the noodles are covered. Add the segmented daylily flowers and scallions, tossing well, and remove from the heat. Garnish with whole flowers and serve.
Click for a Print-Friendly Recipe
Like this Daylily Flower Vegetable Lo Mein? Pin it!
7 thoughts on “Daylily Flower Vegetable Lo Mein”