Dandelion Root
The weed your lawn guy hates turns out to make a surprisingly good cup of tea, earthy and slightly bitter, with a flavor that sits somewhere between coffee and black tea.
What It Is
Dandelion root is exactly what it sounds like: the root of the common dandelion, dried and cut into small pieces ready for brewing. The flavor is earthy, mildly bitter, and rich enough that it has long served as a caffeine-free stand-in for coffee in folk tradition across Europe and North America.
The cut-and-sifted form means the root is chopped into coarse pieces rather than powdered, which makes it easy to steep and strain. Bitter roots like this one have a long history in cooking and herbal tradition as digestive bitters and as base notes in blended teas.
What To Do
To brew it straight, simmer one tablespoon of root in two cups of water for about fifteen to twenty minutes, then strain. It is darker and more complex than most herbal teas. Add a splash of milk of choice and a little sweetener and it reads almost like a light coffee. Blend it with licorice root or cinnamon for something warmer and rounder.
It also works well as a base in homemade tea blends. Store it in a cool, dry spot away from light, and it will hold its flavor for at least a year.
