Can You Dry Nasturtium? Yes, And Dried Flowers and Leaves Do Completely Different Things
Can you dry nasturtium? Yes, you can dry nasturtium. Both the flowers and the leaves hold up well when dried, but they serve different purposes in the kitchen and the medicine cabinet. Dried nasturtium flowers work as edible cake decorations, tea additions, cocktail garnishes and infused vinegars. Dried nasturtium leaves function as a peppery seasoning powder, a tea for respiratory support, a salt blend ingredient, and a soup flavoring. The two forms are not interchangeable, which is why they are worth keeping separately.
Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) is one of the most useful edible flowers in existence. Every part of the plant is edible: flowers, leaves, stems, seed pods. But fresh nasturtium wilts fast. The flowers last a few hours after picking. Drying solves that problem and, in some cases, actually improves the product.
What Dried Nasturtium Flowers Are Good For
Dried nasturtium flowers keep their color reasonably well (orange, red and yellow hues hold better than pale shades) and retain a mild, slightly sweet flavor with faint peppery warmth. The heat that dominates fresh flowers mellows during drying.
Edible Decorations
Dried nasturtium flowers are one of the most popular edible flower garnishes for baked goods. Whole dried blooms pressed onto cakes, cupcakes, tarts and cookies add color without artificial dyes. They work on cheese boards alongside dried fruit and nuts, and they dress up charcuterie plates with a flash of orange or red that no other dried ingredient provides.
Tea and Infusions
Dried nasturtium flowers steeped in hot water produce a mildly peppery, lightly floral tea. Espace pour la vie (Montreal Botanical Garden) recommends making herbal tea from dried flowers, noting that it is best to store dried flowers in glass jars away from bright light to preserve their aromatic value. Steep for 5–10 minutes.
You can blend dried nasturtium flowers with other dried flowers (hibiscus, calendula, rose petals) for a visually striking herbal tea blend.
Infused Vinegar
Nasturtium-infused vinegar is a classic edible-flower preserve. Submerge dried flowers in white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar and let them steep for 3–4 days (or longer for stronger flavor). The vinegar picks up both color and a mild peppery note.
Cocktails and Beverages
Whole dried nasturtium flowers floated in cocktails, prosecco, punch bowls or lemonade add both visual drama and a faint peppery finish.
Potpourri and Crafts
Dried nasturtium flowers retain enough color and shape to work in potpourri blends, pressed-flower art, handmade soap decoration, and candle embellishment. This is a secondary market, but it is real: craft sellers use dried edible flowers for projects where both aesthetics and food-safety matter.
What Dried Nasturtium Leaves Are Good For
Dried nasturtium leaves are a different product entirely. The flavor is sharper (peppery, closer to watercress or arugula) and the applications lean culinary and medicinal rather than decorative.
Nasturtium Powder (Pepper Replacement)
This is the use that surprises most people. Dried nasturtium leaves ground in a spice grinder produce a fine green powder with a flavor Knutzen of Root Simple described as "a kind of zombie apocalypse pepper replacement." It is milder than black pepper, more herbal, with a warmth that does not burn. Sprinkle it on eggs, pasta, roasted vegetables, soup, popcorn, pizza - anywhere you would use a mild seasoning pepper.
The powder mellows the raw peppery bite of fresh nasturtium into something more versatile. That bitterness that makes some people avoid raw nasturtium leaves in salad is reduced when the leaves are dried.
Nasturtium Salt
Crumbled dried nasturtium leaves and flowers blended with sea salt flakes at a 2:1 ratio (two parts dried nasturtium to one part salt). The result is a vivid green-flecked finishing salt with a peppery, slightly herbal character. Uses include rimming cocktail glasses, seasoning grilled fish, curing salmon, finishing roasted vegetables, and topping avocado toast. The salt keeps for a year stored in a dry cool place.
Nasturtium Leaf Tea
Dried nasturtium leaves steeped in water for 5–10 minutes make a peppery, mineral-rich herbal tea. Tua Saude, a health-focused publication, gives a recipe using 4 tablespoons of chopped nasturtium leaves per cup of hot water. The tea has a long history in traditional herbal medicine for respiratory support (coughs, colds, sore throats) and as a diuretic.
Soup and Cooking
Dried nasturtium leaves can be crumbled into soups, stews, omelets and creamy vegetable veloutés. The flavor is peppery and assertive, use sparingly. Promesse de Fleurs, a European gardening and culinary resource, notes that nasturtium leaves "are very peppery, slightly piquant, so use sparingly in cooking." The leaves hold up to heat better than the flowers do.
Infused Oil
Dried nasturtium leaves added to olive oil or coconut oil and heated gently in a double boiler for 1–2 hours produce a nasturtium-infused oil. Strain and store in a glass bottle. Use as a finishing oil for fish, grilled vegetables, bruschetta, or as a base for salad dressings.
Why Dried Flowers and Dried Leaves Are Sold Separately
The two products do not substitute for each other. They have different flavor intensities, different textures, different applications, and different shelf behaviors.
Flavor | Mild, slightly sweet, faintly peppery | Sharp, peppery, watercress-like |
Primary use | Decoration, tea, infused vinegar, drinks | Seasoning powder, tea, salt blends, cooking |
Visual role | High (color retention, whole-flower presentation) | Low (crumbles, powders) |
Heat tolerance | Delicate — best used cold or steeped | Moderate — can be added to soups and cooked dishes |
Shelf life | Up to 1 year in airtight jar, away from light | Up to 1 year in airtight jar, away from light |
Someone buying dried nasturtium flowers is usually after the visual: a cake decorator, a cocktail enthusiast, a tea blender, a cheese board stylist. Someone buying dried nasturtium leaves wants a culinary or herbal ingredient: a seasoning, a tea for wellness, a finishing salt base. Selling them together in one bag would shortchange both buyers.
Nasturtium Nutrition and Health Properties
Nasturtium has a long medical history. It was introduced to Europe from Peru, where Andean cultures including the Inca grew it for both food and medicine. Historically, nasturtium flowers and leaves were used to treat scurvy because of their high vitamin C content. Root Simple's community noted that nasturtium was reportedly used by sailors returning to land to recover from vitamin deficiency.
WebMD's nasturtium overview states the plant "contains vitamin C and might help fight bacteria, fungi, viruses, and tumors." It also notes that a specific product containing horseradish root and nasturtium may reduce the frequency of airway infections and help prevent recurring UTIs, though more research is needed.
The Montecito Journal's food feature reported that nasturtium flowers and leaves contain vitamins C, B1, B2, B3, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, manganese, copper, zinc and iron. The antioxidant lutein, associated with eye and skin health, is also present.
A 2025 study published in Frontiers in Nutrition (Aguilera-Angel et al.) analyzed nasturtium leaves and flowers from Colombia and identified phenolic compounds, flavonoids, and benzyl glucosinolate; the compound whose breakdown product (benzyl isothiocyanate) is responsible for nasturtium's antibacterial effects.
Important: WebMD classifies nasturtium as "possibly safe" for adults but "likely unsafe" for children in medicinal quantities. Pregnant and breastfeeding women should avoid medicinal use. People with kidney disease should not take nasturtium.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you dry nasturtium flowers?
Yes. Dried nasturtium flowers retain their color (especially orange, red and yellow varieties) and develop a milder, slightly sweet flavor compared to fresh. They are used as edible cake decorations, tea additions, cocktail garnishes, infused vinegar bases, and in potpourri. Store in an airtight glass jar away from light for up to one year.
Can you dry nasturtium leaves?
Yes. Dried nasturtium leaves have a peppery flavor similar to watercress. Ground into powder, they work as a mild pepper replacement. They can also be used in herbal tea blends, nasturtium salt, infused oils, soups and seasoning mixes. The Herbal Academy recommends dried nasturtium leaves for tea to soothe coughs and colds.
What do dried nasturtium leaves taste like?
Peppery, herbal, with a warmth that is milder than black pepper. The drying process reduces the sharp raw peppery hit and leaves behind a more rounded, versatile seasoning flavor.
Are dried nasturtium flowers edible?
Yes. All parts of nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) are edible: flowers, leaves, stems, and seed pods. Dried flowers are widely used as edible garnishes for baked goods, in herbal tea blends, and as cocktail decorations.
What are the health benefits of dried nasturtium?
Nasturtium is rich in vitamin C, glucosinolates, and flavonoids. WebMD notes it may help fight bacteria and viruses. Antibacterial effects linked to benzyl isothiocyanate, a compound from glucosinolate breakdown. Traditional uses include respiratory support (coughs, sore throats) and immune boosting.
Sources:
The Herbal Academy. Three Nasturtium Recipes for Summer: dried leaf uses, vinegar recipe, herbal tea.
Espace pour la vie / Montreal Botanical Garden. Edible Flowers Recipes: dried flower tea guidance.
WebMD. Nasturtium: vitamin C content, antibacterial properties, safety classification.
Montecito Journal / Melissa Petitto. Nasturtium Flowers: vitamin and mineral content, antibacterial studies.
Aguilera-Angel et al. (2025). Chemical profiling, antioxidant, and antibacterial properties of Tropaeolum majus L. Frontiers in Nutrition.
Earth.com. How to Grow and Use Nasturtium for Health: antibiotic properties prior to flowering.
The Cooking Naturopath. Ubiquitous Nasturtiums: culinary and medicinal history.
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