Chicory-A Caffeine-Free Coffee-Like Beverage

Chicory-Whole Plant

Chicory is both a rural and urban dweller. It loves full sun and well drained soil. You'll find it along sidewalks and on the edges of sandy/gravely roads. It is an introduced biennial/perennial (www.plants.usda.gov chichorium intybus L.).  It is a beautiful plant to observe with its ray of fringed, square-tipped blueish/purple petals and its dandelion-like basal leaves. These flowers cling right to their stout green stems and are open until noon on sunny days. You can consume both the leaves-boiled for 5-10 minutes-and the roots-roasted and ground into a coffee-like beverage. Chicory leaves should be collected in early Spring because the plant becomes too bitter after that point. The roots are harvestable year-round (Peterson, Lee Allen. Edible Wild Plants-Eastern/Central North America. Peterson Field Guides.1977.)

I decided that I was going to process the root to make the infamous coffee-like/caffeine-free beverage. To prepare the root you must first scrub off the outer brown sheath until the white fleshy coat is exposed. I used an abrasive sponge. Next you peel the flesh from the woody inner core. Lay the peels out on a cookie sheet and bake them at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 2 hours or until the peels are dark and brittle (my roots were thin and only took 1 hour). Next grind the roasted peels and prepare like coffee (I don't have a coffee maker so I improvised). Once ground, the roasted chicory emulates coffee in appearance, aroma, and taste. 

Chicory root was once and still is in demand. "In the late 18th century the Dutch grew the roots for use as a cheeper substitute for coffee-as an additive without caffeine it remains popular in Belgium, France, Germany and the US (Norman, Jill, Herbs &Spices the Cook's Reference, 2002 DK Publishing). On Amazon.com roasted/ground chicory root is sold for anywhere from $10-$16/lb. 

Chicory root is both a laxative and a diuretic. (Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants and Herbs. 2000. Peterson Field Guides). According to the United States Department of Agriculture National Nutrient Database (https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/show/2923?manu=&fgcd=) raw chicory root is packed with vitamins and minerals including folate, vitamin A, Niacin, and calcium. 

Chicory is widely abundant, it is a great coffee substitute, it is currently sought after, and it offers health and nutritional benefits. I must say that this has been one of the most pleasant tasting wild edibles that I have ever sampled. Slack told me that he would harvest more Chicory roots so that we can enjoy this beverage more often. "I could wake up to this every morning" he said.

Below, I have documented how to identify and process the Chicory root so that you too can enjoy a mug of roasted Chicory root.  

Flowers-fringed square-tipped ends, blue/purple petals 

Stems-new and old growth

Dandelion-like basal leaves

Chicory roots

Scrubbed root

Peeling the flesh from the woody inner core

Chicory root peels

Chicory root peels ready to be roasted 

Roasted Chicory root peels

Roasted root in spice grinder

Ground roasted Chicory root

1 1/2tsp of ground chicory root in strainer

Roasted root steeping in boiled water

Mug of roasted Chicory root

Enjoying my first mug of roasted chicory root