I love trying new foods and my foraging discoveries are no exception. Finding free foods is a delight to me and the latest addition to my wild foods repertoire are Dandelions.

For many, dandelions are considered a nuisance, a weed disrupting the serenity of a well-maintained lawn. However, if you resist the temptation to spray the hell out them, you can still control them by eating them!

The young leaves can be added to salads in the spring before they become too bitter. The leaves can also be used to make dandelion leaf tea, which has natural diuretic effects that can reduce water retention. The leaves of dandelions should only be picked and eaten in the spring. They should not be eaten in excess due to their oxalic acid content.

The leafy greens of dandelions are a good source of calcium, magnesium and vitamin K, all of which are vital for bone and teeth health. They also contain folate, needed for a healthy cardiovascular system and for foetal development.

Like other leaves, dandelion leaves contain good amounts of potassium, needed for a healthy nervous system, normal heart rate and fluid balance in the body. Whilst medical diuretics can cause problems as they lead to a loss of potassium from the body, dandelions replace this potassium so help restore balance. Other nutrients in dandelions include iron, zinc, manganese and silicon.

You can also eat dandelion flowers, or use them to make wine. Collect them in a sunny meadow, just before mid-spring, when the most flowers bloom. Use only the flower’s yellow parts. The green sepals at the flower’s base are bitter. The flowers add colour, texture, and an unusual bittersweet flavour to salads. You can also sauté them, dip them in batter and fry them into fritters, or steam them with other vegetables.

The roots can be dried and roasted to make dandelion coffee. Unlike normal coffee it makes a drink that is naturally caffeine-free but it does have the bitter flavour that stimulates the liver, bile flow and digestion. A great substitute for normal coffee. Dandelion root is an excellent source of the prebiotic fibre inulin which actually feeds and encourages the growth of the beneficial bacteria in the gut. Dandelion coffee can be drunk daily to support liver and digestive function.

I have never tried dandelions before, so this was an experiment really. I found a recipe for cooking dandelion leaves and serving them as a vegetable like you would greens. The leaves wilt and shrink like spinach, so you need to pick a lot if you’re cooking for a number of people.

Sauteed Dandelion Greens

Serves 1-2

250g Dandelion Leaves

1 garlic clove

1 tspn honey

Rapeseed oil

Salt & Pepper

Wash the dandelion leaves thoroughly and chop off any extra stalks.

Sauté in a frying pan with a little rapeseed oil and crushed garlic for 10-15 minutes.

I really liked the earthy flavour of the dandelion leaves and the texture reminded me very much of spinach. But, even with the addition of a little honey, they were really quite bitter! I did read that boiling the leaves first can remove some of the bitterness, so I think I’ll do that next time!

References

Food for Free - Richard Mabey

You are what you eat

Common Dandelion

Dandelion Greens

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