• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • DIY Projects
    • Homemade Bath and Body
    • Sewing
    • Flower Crafts/Decor
    • Thrift Store/Vintage
  • Gardening
    • Flower Gardens
    • Container Gardening
    • Houseplants
    • Indoor Gardening
    • Landscaping
    • DIY Garden Art
  • Decorate
    • Room Makeovers
    • Spring Decor
    • Summer Decor
    • Fall Decor
    • Winter Decor
    • Home Decor Projects
  • Recipes
    • Breakfast Recipes
    • Lunch Recipes
    • Dinner Recipes
    • Dessert
    • Salad Recipes
    • Soups and Stews
    • Side Dish Recipes
    • Appetizers and Snacks
    • Healthy Recipes
  • Holidays
    • Valentine's Day
    • Easter
    • Mother's Day
    • Halloween
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
Hearth and Vine
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Home
  • About Hearth and Vine
  • DIY Projects
    • ...Flower/Gardening Crafts
    • ... Bath and Body
    • ...Sewing/Fabric Crafts
    • ...Thrift Store/Upcycle
  • Gardening
    • ...Flower Gardens
    • ...Container Gardening
    • ...Indoor Gardening
    • ...DIY Garden Art
  • Decorate
    • ...Home Decor Projects
    • ...Spring Decor
    • ...Summer Decor
    • ...Fall Decor
    • ...Winter Decor
    • ...Room Makeovers
  • Recipes
    • ...Appetizers and Snacks
    • ...Dinner Recipes
    • ...Side Dish Recipes
    • ...Salad Recipes
    • ...Dessert
    • ...Drinks
  • Holidays
    • ...Valentine's Day
    • ...Easter
    • ...Mother's Day
    • ...Halloween
    • ...Thanksgiving
    • ...Christmas
  • Subscribe
  • Instagram
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×

    Home » Recipes

    Cooking with Chives - Growing, Harvesting and Recipes

    March 13, 2022 by Patti Estep 7 Comments

    Jump to Recipe
    Botanical print of chives
    Chives in the garden in bloom.

    Learn about growing, harvesting, and cooking with chives. This hardy herb is very easy to grow and is enjoyed by most everyone in the family

    Chives in bloom
    Botanical drawing of chives plant and parts.

    Growing Chives

    • Latin Name: Allium schoenoprasum
    • Type: Perennial
    • Hardiness: Zones 3 through 9
    • Sun: Full Sun to Part Shade
    • Water: Average
    • Bloom Time: Spring
    • Height: 18 inches
    • Width: 10 - 14 inches

    Part of the allium family chives are akin to garlic, onions, and leeks. They are one of the easiest herbs to grow.  Chive plants show up very early in the garden and can be used all season long. Chives are easily grown from seed but should also be readily available at any nursery. They grow just about anywhere as long as they get a few hours of sun and some water. They are easy to divide and share with family and friends. Chives sometimes self-seed giving you more plants to love. Not only do they have edible leaves but you can eat the flowers too. If nothing else the blossoms make a pretty garnish.

    Harvesting Chives

    Harvest chives by snipping with scissors at the base leaving one to two inches of the plant above the ground.

    Newsletter Signup
    Join Our Newsletter List!

    Be the first to receive new posts and get access to our Subscribers Only Page.

    Chives in small ice cube trays in oil.

    Preserving Chives

    The best way to keep your chives is to freeze them. Dried chive leaves turn color and lose their flavor however the chive blossoms will retain their shape and can be used to decorate wreaths or other projects. After you cut and wash them, dry the chives thoroughly with paper towels, place them in zip plastic bags, and then into the freezer.

    Alternatively, you can cut them up and place them in some olive oil in ice cube trays (above) Also, if you have a sunny window, you can dig some up and grow them there over the winter.

    Chopped chives on cutting board

    Cooking with Chives

    Chives have a delicate onion flavor similar to green onions or scallions but are not as strong. Typically the leaves are chopped up very fine for flavoring savory dishes. They are great to add to egg dishes like omelets and quiche. One of my favorites is sprinkling chives over corn on the cob during the summer.

    Chives also work well with vegetables, especially potatoes. You can add them to your mashed potatoes or home fries, and of course, they are a well-known topping for baked potatoes with sour cream. Try them in your salads, soups, or treat chives as a topping for your next pot of chili.

    One thing to remember is- and this is true for most herbs- try to add your chives at the very end, or after you are done cooking. This will help retain the most flavor from the plant. Below are a couple of easy recipes that I make on a regular basis with chives. 

    Patti signature

     More Recipes Using Chives

    •  Puff Pastry Pinwheels
    • Chive Breadsticks
    • Baked Potato Party Dip

     

    Chive Butter

    This "compound butter" is easy to make from spring well into the fall. We use it on baked potatoes, corn on the cob, veggies and steaks.
    3.67 from 3 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Total Time 10 minutes mins
    Course Appetizers and Snacks
    Cuisine American
    Servings 16 tablespoons
    Calories 102 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    • 1 cup butter softened 2 sticks
    • 1/2 cup chopped fresh chive leaves
    • pinch of salt

    Instructions
     

    • Use a pair of kitchen scissors or any scissors just make sure they are clean and snip the chives.
    • Add to the butter and salt, and mix together well.
    • Place in a small bowl like a ramekin and refrigerate until needed.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1gCalories: 102kcalFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 31mgSodium: 91mg

    Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although attempts have been made to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.

    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
    « Fattoush Recipe aka Middle Eastern Bread Salad
    Painting Easter Eggs with Watercolors »

    About Patti Estep

    Patti is the creator of Hearth and Vine, a home and garden blog filled with projects to inspire your creative side. She loves crafting, gardening, decorating and entertaining at her home in Pennsylvania. When she is not working on a project at home or searching for treasures at nurseries and thrift stores with her girlfriends, you’ll probably find her with family and friends, at a restaurant, or home party enjoying new and different food adventures.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Jennifer

      April 22, 2022 at 7:30 pm

      Currently soaking chive blossoms in White Wine Vinegar

      Reply
      • Patti Estep

        April 23, 2022 at 7:02 am

        That's a great use for those beautiful blossoms Jennifer!

        Reply
    2. lumberlox

      May 29, 2019 at 1:05 pm

      Say Patti, I pull off the flowers before they open on my chive plants so I don’t have an abundance of them. Is There any type of recipe I can make with those?

      Reply
      • Patti Estep

        May 29, 2019 at 2:59 pm

        Chive blossoms are edible. They are not quite as strong as the leave but you can use them in a salad or as a garnish. I've also added them to vinegar and used them with the leaves in chive butter.

        Reply
    3. Kathy

      July 16, 2014 at 4:22 pm

      Great post! Love chives - I appreciate you sharing the recipe at Home and Garden Thursday,
      Kathy

      Reply
      • Patti

        July 16, 2014 at 5:10 pm

        Kathy,
        Thanks for stopping by. I have one in cilantro next. Glad you liked it!
        Patti

        Reply

    Trackbacks

    1. The Essential Herbs Series: #1-5 | PreparednessMama says:
      April 29, 2015 at 7:06 am

      […] Matter has put together some wonderful information about growing and harvesting chives and shares a recipe for chive butter that you won’t want to miss. Make this ahead and freeze it.  If you grow enough you may even […]

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Follow Me

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

    Patti profile pic

    Hi! I'm Patti

    Join me to create lots of fun DIY projects including crafts, gardening, home decor and tasty recipes.

    more about me

    Popular Posts

    Blue jean crossover bag

    DIY Crossbody Bag from Jeans

    tabletop water gardens

    How to Make an Indoor Water Garden

    Echievera planter

    What to do With a Stretched Succulent

    Fabric bowl covers in 3 prints

    How to Make Fabric Bowl Covers

    Long blooming perennials including yarrow, geraniums, black-eyed susan, daisy, coneflower, coreopsis, and russian sage.

    10+ Long Blooming Perennials

    Chicken black bean tortilla casserole

    Chicken Black Bean Casserole Recipe

    Footer

    ^ back to top

    About
    Privacy Policy
    Disclosure Policy

    Sign Up Here!
    for our
    newsletter &
    special offers

    • Shop
    • Web Stories

    As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. i.e. as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2023 Hearth and Vine