Why is it that the taste of beautiful cherry blossom-flavored food is always hard to describe?

With the coming of spring, many businesses are rushing to launch "Spring Limited Edition" products, hoping to attract consumers with a touch of spring. When we open the shopping app and search for "Spring Limited Edition", the pink and tender cherry blossom flavored foods occupy almost half of the products that come into view.

Source: Screenshot of a shopping website

Unlike its attractive appearance, cherry blossom-flavored foods often do not have a very good reputation. Why is the popular cherry blossom so incompatible with food?

1. Japan’s “edible cherry blossoms”

Let's first discuss why cherry blossoms, as ornamental plants, are related to food? When it comes to cherry blossoms, many people will inevitably think of Japan. As the national flower of Japan, cherry blossom elements are widely present in the lives of Japanese people and are also fully applied to food. The more famous cherry blossom foods in Japan include salted cherry blossoms, cherry blossom wine, water Shingen cakes, cherry blossom sushi, cherry blossom cakes, and cherry blossom mousse. The cherry blossoms used in these foods are generally edible Kwanzan cherry blossoms, which are Japan's "edible cherry blossoms."

Mizu Shingen Cake

Source: A shopping website

The Sekiyama cherry tree is the flower of the Sekiyama cherry tree (Cerasus serrulate var. lannesiana 'Sekiyama'), which has a long history of being eaten in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. my country began to introduce and plant Sekiyama cherry trees in the 1990s. Currently, it is widely planted and has a history of being eaten by the people in Shandong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and other provinces.

Guanshan Cherry Blossom

Source: hippopx

On February 24, 2022, the National Health Commission accepted the application of Guanshan cherry as a new food ingredient, and emphasized that due to insufficient safety data on Guanshan cherry in infants, pregnant women and lactating women, the above groups should not eat it, and the unsuitable groups should be marked on the labels and instructions. The food safety indicators of this ingredient shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of other vegetable products in the current national food safety standards of my country.

2. “Sakura flavor” and “Sakura flavored food”

A careful look at the ingredient lists of many sakura-flavored foods currently on the market (such as potato chips, biscuits, beverages, desserts and pastries, etc.) reveals that, just like there is no wife in wife cakes, most sakura-flavored foods do not have sakura-related ingredients. In other words, "sakura flavor" and "sakura-flavored foods" have no essential relationship.

When you are appreciating cherry blossoms, you may notice that the fragrance of cherry blossoms is not strong. It is not as strong as the purple-leaf plum, nor as fragrant as the rose. Even if we are very close to the flowers and try hard to feel the fragrance, we cannot smell any obvious fragrance.

So where does the cherry blossom flavor in "cherry blossom flavored food" come from? It is naturally the flavor that the manufacturer blends with essences based on his own understanding. This is also the reason why most cherry blossom flavored foods are not recognized by consumers. It is really difficult to meet the standard of deliciousness if the flavor is configured by imagination and blended with essences.

Source: A shopping website

Japanese foods related to cherry blossoms, such as salted cherry blossoms, also require a lot of seasonings during the processing process. Therefore, what people taste is not the taste of the cherry blossoms themselves, but the taste of the seasonings. The cherry blossoms are just used as decorations to increase the viewing experience of the food.

Source: A shopping website

3. It’s better to see cherry blossoms than to eat them

Instead of choosing to feel the spring by eating cherry blossom flavored foods, it is better to go out to appreciate the cherry blossoms and experience the beauty of spring firsthand.

"Cherry blossom" is the general name for plants of the genus Cerasus, belonging to the subfamily Prunoideae of the family Rosaceae. The flowering period is mostly from March to April, and the main species are distributed in China, Japan and Korea. Although the history of cherry blossom cultivation in my country can be traced back to the Qin and Han dynasties, in ancient times, cherries and cherry blossoms were not distinguished, and people paid more attention to the cultivation of edible cherries, and lacked the development and utilization of ornamental cherry blossoms.

There are many varieties of cherry blossoms in my country. According to Wang Xianrong's monograph "Chinese Cherry Blossom Varieties Atlas", there are 19 species, 5 variants and 67 varieties of cherry blossoms planted in China. These cherry blossoms have rich colors, including white, light pink, light purple, rose red, yellow green, etc. The flower shapes mainly include single petal, semi-double petal, double petal, chrysanthemum petal, terrace and pavilion.

In this season when flowers are in full bloom, we are inevitably dazzled by the flowers and cannot tell them apart. Let us quickly learn how to identify cherry blossoms.

In summary:

Look at the flower stalks - cherry blossoms have longer stalks, while peach, apricot and plum blossoms have shorter stalks;

Look at the petals - the tip of a single cherry blossom petal has a crack (like a small indentation), while peach, pear, apricot, and plum blossoms have no cracks;

Look at the bark - the bark of the cherry tree is smooth and has horizontal stripes.

By completing the above three steps, you can identify the cherry blossoms that are more common in daily life without confusing them with the flowers of other Rosaceae plants.

I have been blinded by the beautiful packaging of cherry blossom flavored foods time and time again, and the taste is hard to describe every time. Now I finally understand: Goodbye, cherry blossom flavored foods, wouldn’t it be better to go to the spring when flowers are in full bloom and appreciate the beautiful cherry blossoms themselves?