Dandelion root "coffee"

[WhistlingBadger]

So, I promised @jaylach and @AdoraBelle Dearheart in another thread to give an update when we finally tried this stuff. Back story: The Badger family was weeding our severely neglected garden beds the other day, and excavated some rather huge dandelion roots. The Badgerling (@TheLavenderBadger) and I had heard of pioneer types making "coffee" out of dandelion roots, so culinary adventurers that we are, we decided to make some and try it.

Here are the roots, cleaned up and cut into about 1" pieces. We sliced the really thick ones so they would all cook a little more evenly.

We roasted them in a 350F oven for about an hour, until they turned a nice, dark, coffee-like brown. The house smelled rather nice, if a bit odd. This evening, I put about 3 tablespoons of the roots in about 3 cups of hot water brought them to a boil, simmered the mix for around 10 minutes, then poured it through a strainer. The resulting beverage has a nice color and smells rather nice.

Taste? It has a nice, pleasant roasty flavor without the bitterness or sharpness of actual coffee. A bit bland. The next batch, I'll grind the roots and/or use more. Would be nice mixed with chicory root, maybe, but that doesn't grow around here. I put a little honey in mine; the Badgerling added a splash of milk, both with satisfactory results. It isn't coffee, but next time I feel the need for a warming, roasty tasting drink without the caffeine, this might do the trick. And of course, it's extraordinarily affordable.

 

[Seisage]

I love dandelion root drinks! I've never made it myself (I should try to do that at some point), but I have a couple herbal "tea" blends that use dandelion root prominently and they're very good.

I have used dandelion lookalikes to make syrup though! I actually don't have very many true dandelions in my immediate area. Most of them are cat's ear (aka false dandelion). A couple years back, I collected a bunch of the flowers, separated the petals from the greenery and fluff, boiled and steeped them like tea, and made a syrup out of the resulting extraction. It's almost honey-like in flavor. A very rich and heavy floral taste. It's fantastic when mixed with just a bit of sparkling water or club soda to make a lightly sweet flavored fizzy drink for summertime.

 

[GaryE]

A world without dark roasted, real coffee would be like a world without love.

That doesn't mean interesting drinks favoured by starving settlers aren't worth trying. You get that Donner Party cookbook out!

In seriousness, I've tried a lot of foraged foods, and they're often quite good. My gardening daughter has connected up with some heirloom veggie gardeners, and started seeds from a few largely forgotten treats from the past. I'm hoping they'll grow so I can try them in the autumn, and maybe start some as I build my own vegetable garden. I know well from the fish world that just because a product has been replaced on the market doesn't mean it was inferior. Food has fashions. It seems there is an increasing set of young gardening types who are growing native plants and exploring old tastes.

I usually grow heirloom tomato varieties, as they haven't been bred for fibre structures (shipping) inside. They were bred for taste and they have it.

I like the French name for dandelions, pissenlit. "Lit" is a bed, and the rest you can figure out.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

We enjoy a lot of native plants, more as trail nibbles than as a main course. Wood sorrel, wild onion, grouse berries, pine needle tea, shooting stars, sego lily, prickly pear, and many others. Never had any luck getting any of those to grow in a garden, so we just leave them in the wilderness and enjoy them when we're out there. At least dandelions grow closer to home, and unlike most edibles, they actually want to grow here.

It definitely isn't a replacement for real coffee, or tea for that matter. But I enjoy things I can do myself, and I can't grow tea or coffee around here. It's pretty good for what it is. It's a bit like veggie burgers: If you're expecting a black bean patty to taste like beef, it's going to be a huge disappointment. But if you can accept that we're putting some beans and other veggies on a bun, and that's what they taste like? They're good enough. Sometimes you just have to accept things for what they are. This dandelion drink is surprisingly good. But it ain't coffee.

 

[GaryE]

Please keep reporting as you try new versions. It sounds interesting. I've recently been hit with the family genetic curse, diabetes, and there is a shortage of good tasting sugar and aspartame free drinks out there. I've avoided the sugary stuff for most of my adult life (I knew it was coming), but now that I need to drink more, I see the issue. I am not ready to do my water changes with a straw, so I have to start trying to drink litres of something. Water is great, but a bit like taking medicine.

Do you know of any herbal teas that could be put in a water bottle and used cold?

 

[Nofrnds2pla]

I get tons of dandelions in my yard every spring (I don’t have a lawn. I have a yard). When I first moved here, my one neighbor asked me if he could come into my yard and pick my dandelions. Well, I found he was making dandelion wine and that you had to use the very early dandelions to make it with. he gave me a bottle when he was finished. It’s been so long ago,I can’t remember the taste, but I do remember I very much enjoyed it! On the coffee topic I’m very much a coffeeholic ️ and One of the best moves I made lately was getting rid of those coffee pods, digging out my old camping percolator and grinding my beans for my coffee because it is almost impossible to find the course grind needed for percolators. I forgot how heavenly coffee could smell and taste!

 

[Uberhoust]

Interesting thread. You should look for chicory, it is found in Wyoming, though not super abundant. It is super easy to find when blooming because there are not many plants with the same blue flower.

Do you know of any herbal teas that could be put in a water bottle and used cold?

You might want to try anything with hibiscus in it, it has a refreshing flavor when cold.

 

[Nofrnds2pla]

Might be a little off topic I apologize but this is my favorite Dandelion

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Interesting thread. You should look for chicory, it is found in Wyoming, though not super abundant. It is super easy to find when blooming because there are not many plants with the same blue flower.


You might want to try anything with hibiscus in it, it has a refreshing flavor when cold.

Yeah, chickory does grow somewhere in the state, but I've never seen it in my area.

@GaryE Just about any herbal tea will work in cold water. Just get a variety pack from your grocery store and start trying some. I've never liked hibiscus; I'm partial to peppermint or lemon-ginger in my water bottle. Sometimes on a hot day I put a bag in a liter bottle of cold water, and it adds just enough flavor to be interesting. You probably shouldn't use dandelion, though, as it's a diuretic (at least, the leaves are; not sure about the cooked roots) so might be counterproductive.