Dandelion

I have very fond memories of gathering Dandelion leaves as a child in order to feed them to my pet rabbits, of picking the full flowers and racing around the local park, arms outstretched, imagining myself an airplane and using my thumbs to flick the flowerhead missiles clasped tightly in my hands. I remember picking the furry looking, globe-shaped seed heads, taking a deep breath and then exhaling fiercely in an attempt to magically synchronise the number of exhales with the time of day and of peeling the hollow stems, to see how many thin strips I could reduce it to while occasionally touching the very tip of my tongue to the white sap and then recoiling in humour-fuelled-horror at the extremely bitter flavour: happy days! I hope those of you reading this remember your early memories with dandelion?  

As I grew older, my attention turned to more pressing, age-related activities, mischief and social norms and I slowly began to forget those days of simple, innocent play and wonder but, I never forgot what a dandelion looked like. I find this is the case with every adult that attends my foraging courses, they instantly recognise the leaves and specifically the flowers of dandelion. Though, as was the case with myself, once upon a time, very few realise that dandelions are in fact edible, medicinal and useful. 

During the early phase of a warm spring, dandelions erupts in a billowing cascade of magnificent, golden-yellow flowers, hueing up the simple green of gardens, parks, meadows, waste ground and along urban streets: a true sign that spring has indeed sprung!

Some adults, however, are far from thrilled by the annual occurrence of the humble dandelion. To these strange, out of touch humans, dandelions are simply unworthy of the respect, honour and gratitude they so rightly and naturally deserved. Dandelions are 'weeds', a nuisance plant, thwarting plans and efforts to maintain a neat and tidy garden space, therefore, they must be eradicated at all costs: how strange, how unnatural... 

Thankfully, times are changing and much in the way of respectful, ancient, indigenous wisdom regarding wild plants is resurfacing, thanks to the efforts of indigenous peoples, foragers, medical herbalists, permaculture enthusiasts, wise gardeners, brave chefs and nature lovers. The future of the humble dandelion is indeed looking very bright and, colourful!

The common English name 'Dandelion' is derived from the French 'Dent-de-Lion' meaning, 'Tooth of the Lion', a reference which describes the common 'tooth-like' features of the leaves (though not all dandelions have toothed leaves). Another common term/reference is 'piss-a-bed' derived from the French 'pis-en-lit', referring to the diuretic properties of dandelion. Strangely, there are no names or terms that refer to the beautiful flowers.

Edibile Uses of Dandelion: All in all, dandelions are very much neglected by the masses, which is a shame because, after stinging nettles, dandelions are the most vitamin and mineral packed wild green you will find in the UK. All parts are edible, excluding the furry part of the seeds and the hollow stem of the flower (although there is a use for the hollow flower stem).

Leaves: Leaves are at their best in the spring and autumn and are lovely added raw to salads and are best when sliced thinly to combat the varying bitterness. Most of the bitter flavour is in the central rib of the leaf. If you stand freshly gathered leaves upright, in a glass of spring water overnight (24 hours is better), the bitterness will lessen. Leaves can be blanched in salted, simmering water for several minutes, before being tossed into a hot wok or frying pan, with the obligatory, sizeable slice of butter and added as a side dish or, a little dish of their own: try blanching, stir-frying, adding a little lemon juice, light soy, sesame oil and toasted sesame seed (add cooked wild garlic leaves to the mix to bulk and add sweetness). Stir-fry leaves pair well with wild, red meats such as wood pigeon, venison and duck. Do pick the fresher, more central leaves and try avoid those plants that are in full sunshine, they seem to generate more bitterness.

Unopened Flower Buds: The best way of rendering these fully edible is to salt them for several days, wash, dry and then sweet pickle them to create an absolute flavour-bomb of a wild caper. These salty, sweet-pickled beauties are excellent added to wild salads or when accompanying strong, tangy, cheddar cheese or red meats such as venison or wild duck: especially when cured and smoked or simply flash fried in a hot pan and finished in the oven (just be sure to rest the meat before slicing). Raw, the buds are just too bitter unless you remove the green outer and calyx but, to be honest, this is just fiddly and you may as well just pick the opened flowers and eat the flower petals.

Opened Flowers: My personal favourite is dandelion flower wine or mead! I remember making my first ever dandelion flower wines (yes, plural) back in 2007: I forget what happened after drinking my first bottle though! Dandelions make one of the oldest and greatest flowers wines/meads and two distinctly different flavour profiles can be achieved: wine made only with the yellow flowers or, wine made with the flowers and the green outers (calyx). The former is more straight forward in flavour whereas, the inclusion of approx 50% of the green (calyx) lends the wine a more resinous edge and an ever so slightly bitter note (this doesn't impair the wine). Flowers can be coaxed free of their calyx by gently rubbing the bulbous base of the flower head between thumb and index finger, these can then be scattered atop wild salads. Flowers can also be used to make 'dandelion honey', a jelly that does resemble honey with regards to it's flavour - it's very nice. Dandelion flower/petal fritters and bhajis are worthwhile making too. You can pick freshly opened flowers, warmed by the sun and place them in a kilner jar with whiskey to create 'dandelion whiskey': this lovely idea comes from Andy Hamilton (wild booze extraordinaire!).

Roots: The quintessential classic here is dandelion root coffee which, I have to say, despite the work required to produce it, makes a damn fine brew. It's not at all like coffee, other than in colour, as it lacks that distinctive coffee flavour but it creates a very pleasant warm drink. Should you dare, which you should, to venture down the dandelion root-coffee-road and have oodles of finished product, try roasting a percentage until they are as deep-brown as possible (without burning them) and then powder them. That powder can be added to chocolate brownies, chocolate cake or biscuits. Chunkier roots can be cleaned, parboiled (or not) and simply roasted in the oven, try adding a little splash of thick, sweet magnolia or elderberry balsamic to them, very tasty.

Flowering Stem: The only use I've found for these is as a drinking straw. There are many edible plants with hollow stems and all can be used as drinking straws. Some you can munch after supping your glass dry (unless you prefer a refill of course). The stem of dandelion has that added bitter factor which is very well suited to wild cocktails.

 

Other Uses: As mentioned earlier, the leaves are a great addition to the diets of rabbits and guinea pigs. Then there is the age old tradition of guessing the time by blowing on the seed heads, something I believe should be taught to young children before we lose this lovely, innocent, childish past-time which serves a much greater purpose: seed dispersal! Nature gave us fun ways of interacting with its many forms and in the process ensure seed dispersal, plant generation proliferation and a powerful, important source of nutrition and medicine that would benefit many organisms, including humans. 

Did you know that sap from the hollow stems of the dandelion flowers, when applied to the skin and left for several and more hours, creates a faint tattoo that is easily washable? Try it with your kids: think of an image you/they would like to draw, pick a long, robust stem, apply the sap to the back of the hand, keep snapping the stem to release more sap, apply to the skin and once finished, leave the hand unwashed. It may take a wee while but, your picture will eventually appear, as if by magic...

Looking after nature: No Mow May: In recent years there has been much in the way of attempting to stay the hands and mowing machines of council appointed contractors and home-gardeners alike. Bearing in mind that our weather patterns are somewhat less predictable than they once seemed to be and that the early stages of spring are an important time for many flying creatures, especially as some are just waking up and others are emerging for the time ever, doesn't it seem a tad strange and counter-intuitive to go mowing down beautiful flowers that provide more than just nectar/food. Flowers enable creatures to take refuge, provide food (other than nectar), socialise and for all we know, they just love to hang out and other aspects that we merely have no idea of. April can often be very unpredictable with regards to the weather, we experience everything from glorious sunshine, sudden and prolonged spells of rain, snow etc. May is therefore, the first month where, due to our seasonal positioning, we experience much more in the way of warm, settled weather. This weather is ideal for flowers and the multitudinous myriad of tiny and other creatures that rely upon the emergence and presence of flowers and flower diversity, so mowing them down, for whatever reason (and I am genuinely stuck for a truly sensible or logical reason for doing so) is utter folly and, I'm sorry to say, selfish. So, please, do let the flower grows, they benefit everyone and everything. Let's be the change we wish to see in the world. especially toward the world and its beneficial, multiple life supporting organisms and ecosystems.  

Dandelions aplenty in a field in spring