The fresh flowers can be added to salads. When newly opened, Viola flowers may be used to decorate salads or in stuffing's for poultry or fish. Soufflés, cream and similar desserts can be flavored with essence of Viola flowers. The young leaves are edible raw or cooked as a somewhat bland leaf vegetable.

Candied violet or crystallized violet is a flower, usually of Viola odorata, preserved by a coating of egg white and crystallized sugar. Alternately, hot syrup is poured over the fresh flower (or the flower is immersed in the syrup), and stirred until the sugar recrystallizes, and is dried. This method is still used for rose petals, was applied for orange flowers in the past (when almonds or orange peel are treated this way they are called as pralines). Candied violets are still made commercially at Toulouse, France, where they are known as violettes de Toulouse. Viola flavors the liqueurs Crème Yvette, Crème de Violette, and Parfait d'Amour. It is also used in Parma Violets.