[Sca-cooks] Newbie question about dandelions

Terry Decker t.d.decker at worldnet.att.net
Tue Mar 11 06:11:27 PDT 2008


There are a number of plants referred to as dandelions found in both Eurasia 
and the Americas.  The common dandelion is Taraxacum officinale.  It is an 
import from Europe.  The second most common is Taraxacum laevigatum, the 
rock dandelion, imported from England.  These two species are wide spread 
across North America, while native species such as the harp dandelion (T. 
lyratum) tend to be regionalized.  To my knowledge, there is little, if any, 
edibility difference between the species.  Your dandelions are most likely 
T. officinale.

The usefulness of your crop is probably based on the quantity and whether 
they are absorbing toxins from external sources.

Bear

> Ok, don't laugh, but are dandelions old world or new world food, and does 
> anyone have any recipes or know how they were used?  How did they differ 
> from the common yard dandelions of today?  I have heard of eating them as 
> greens and making wine from them but no other uses.  Is it worth trying 
> with our current crop in the backyard or is this just an exercise in 
> futility?
>
> Christianna (the newbie one from Texas who mostly just lurks)




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