Belonging to the family of onions, Chives are their smallest member. The tiny bulbs have long, thin and hollow green leaves. Chives carry a flavor and aroma that is common in onion family, but in a subtle quantity. They are often grown in clumps.
Chives are grown for the leaves that are added as flavoring agent. They are used in various recipes in the traditional French and Sweden culinary. They are chopped and used as an ingredient while cooking fish, potatoes and soups. The hollow leaves look like grass having a mild onion odour. The herb has clusters of rose purple flowers which can also be used in the culinary.
Also known as Chinese chives, garlic chives have a violet color. They are used in a similar way to green onion and garlic. This variety of chives is often used in the making of dumplings made with egg and pork.
Taller than all other chives varieties, giant Siberian chives have more green-blue foliage and a richer taste. The chives leaves are snipped and used fresh for the flavor to make the dish tasty. Since overheating destroys the flavor, chives are added at the end of the cooking process.
Nutritional value
1. Chives are believed to have similar medicinal properties to those of garlic.
2. The minerals present in chives are beneficial for the circulatory system.
3. The leaves are good sources for vitamins A and C, calcium and iron.
Did you know?
The plant or leaves are often referred to only in plural form because they grow like a cluster rather than alone.
Chives were used by the Romanian gypsies for fortune telling.