Roasted Chicory Root
Roasted chicory root brews dark and slightly bitter, like coffee's earthier cousin, and has stood in for the real thing since at least the Napoleonic Wars.
What It Is
Chicory is a blue-flowered plant whose roots, when roasted and ground, produce a deep, rich brew that looks remarkably like coffee. The roasting is what makes this version distinct: it turns the root's natural sugars dark and coaxes out a bittersweet, almost chocolatey flavor with none of coffee's caffeine. New Orleans-style café au lait made chicory famous in America, but the tradition of roasting and brewing chicory root goes back centuries across Europe and North Africa.
The granules dissolve well in hot water and also blend smoothly into coffee to stretch it or soften its bite. It has a slightly woody, caramel-edged bitterness that mellows when milk or sweetener is added.
What To Do
Brew it like coffee: use about one tablespoon of granules per eight ounces of hot water, either steeped and strained or run through a French press. For a classic New Orleans blend, mix it roughly one part chicory to three or four parts ground coffee before brewing. It pairs beautifully with warm spices, so a pinch of cinnamon or cardamom in the cup is worth trying.
Store it in a sealed container away from light and heat, same as you would coffee. It keeps well for months. Beyond the cup, a strong brew can replace coffee in chocolate baked goods for a deeper, less caffeinated flavor.
