Coffee made from roasted Dandelion Roots has a deliciously unique taste. When brewed properly, it looks and taste just like coffee. I always get a positive response when I serve the coffee during my workshops. People are sometimes hesitant to taste it but the whole coffee pot disappears without you knowing it.
Dandelion Root is rich in vitamins and minerals and even micronutrients. It contains many components that are used in medicines, including inulin which is important in controlling diabetes.
Dandelion Coffee has a bitter flavour that is good for our body and it helps stimulate the digestive system, it starts from the cleansing and the absorbing of the nutrients that we take. This herb can be used as food or medicine. Unlike the coffee that is sold in the market, the Dandelion coffee has no harmful contents. People would be living healthy if they would start the day with a Dandelion Coffee.
Harvesting Dandelion Root, Dandelions Roots grow vertically downwards with a length of a foot and a half, so you will need a good shovel than can take the roots from underground. Harvesting the roots early spring or late in fall is the best time to get the herbs medicinal and nutritional value. This is the season when the nutrients are mainly stored in the roots. But you can harvest the roots anytime to make Dandelion Root coffee.
It would be easier to harvest the roots when the ground is very soft or after rain. Digging the roots becomes very difficult and hard when the ground is dry and hard so you have to check and plan carefully on when to harvest them. Harvesting the roots from a farm field that is plowed regularly is the best place because the soil is loose and that way the roots can grow very big which is easier for harvesting. Dandelions that grow in your backyard have very small roots.
Dandelions that have thick clumps of leaves would usually have roots that are nice and fat. You can also use a knife to cut the green leaves from the roots. To make 3.5 kg of ground Dandelion root, you would need about 18 kg of roots. And this would give you 38 liters of coffee. You can take the greens as well and freeze them for later. The greens can be more that the roots that you harvest so you have to carefully plan it. I usually collect for the entire year on both coffee and greens.
Scrubbing the roots by hand takes a lot of time and thus I have developed an efficient method to wash it in large quantities. Put the roots inside a bucket, fill the bucket with water. Stir or move the roots while inside the bucket until the water becomes muddy.
Pour off the muddy water and do the same process until such a time that the water is clear.
Use a large sharp knife to cut them into chunks. Put the chunks in a bowl and fill it up with water again. Stir it up with your hands again until you get cloudy water and pour it off afterwards then do the same process until the water becomes clear.
Grind the chunks using a food processor. Grind two cups of chopped roots into the food processor until you get a product that is a mixture that has coarse roots on it. Do the same procedure for left chopped roots, two cups per batch until everything has been ground up. You can also roast the roots first before grinding them but I personally find it faster and easier when they are freshly ground. You can also wash the mixture once again to be sure they are clean. If you prefer to wash them again, spread them over a clean towel until they are dry enough on order to save time spent in the oven. Use a cookie sheet to roast the roots. Spread them on the sheet and roast them as much as you can to save oven time. Roast them over 250 degree with the oven door a little open as they are being roasted so that the moisture can get out of the oven. It takes two hours to roast them dry. The roots will shrink 1/4 from its original size. Stir them from time to time to ensure even roasting on all sides. Be careful, as they reach your desired color; take them out of the oven. Once they are dry, you can store them in glass jars.
Others would grind the roots so that they become powdered and ready for their coffee pot. I personally like the coffee when it coarse just likes tea.
In a cup of water, use a tablespoon of the roasted roots. You can also adjust the measurements to your own preference if you like your coffee strong or not. I simmer the roots in a coffee pot for 10-15 minutes until it has the same color of coffee. Not all people would like to go through the process in the preparation of the coffee. Others would just buy it from a local store; however, it is not pure dandelion root.
Dandelion roots can also be used in some other beverage aside from coffee. We can make a spicy tea from these roots. This tea is called 'Chai' in Middle East. You will need:
a cup Roasted Dandelion root 6 tablespoons of Fennel or Anise seed 36 green pods of Cardamom 72 Cloves 6 sticks of Cinnamon 2 tablespoons of dried Ginger root 1½ teaspoon of black peppercorns 12 Bay leaves.
Add 1 tablespoon of tea mixture then simmer for 5minutes then add honey or brown sugar then add milk or cream. Reheat the mixture then it's ready.
The next chai is has a chocolaty flavor. 2 cups Roasted Dandelion root ½ cup Cinnamon bark ½ cup Ginger root ½ cup Cardamom seeds ½ cup Star Anise Honey Milk
Every 2 cups of water use 3 tablespoon. Simmer it for 10 minutes. Add milk and honey, then heat but do not boil. You can serve it either hot or cold.
This spicy tea is good for winter. 1 cup Roasted Dandelion root ½ cup dried Orange Peel ½ cup Cinnamon bark ¼ cup dried Ginger root
Per cup, use 1 tablespoon only. Simmer it for 10-15 minutes the use honey to sweeten it.
There are many other things you can make out of the roots.
