Dandelions

[somethingnuw]

My dad is an old Italian farmer who grew up in post war Italy...as a result I grew up eating some weird crap....one of my favourites is dandelion...get an old knife...find them n just cut into the ground pull the whole plant...when we get a 5 gallon bucket full we clean them....split them in 4 ...cut off the cotton inch...now pull the leaves....throw away any stem or budding flower...best in the spring before the yellow flower blooms....now here is the trick...if you have a very cold winter...leaves are fresh tender n young...use them like a salad....we fry up thick skinned bacon with onions...pour balsamic vinegar and olive oil on them...salt n paper add your bacon n onions once they cool....if we collect them in an area where plants didn't die over the winter ( bigger tougher leaves) we clean them same as above...in just flash boil them...we then put them away in zip lock bags n freeze them...too cook we fry them again with bacon n onions n serve them with a boiled type f salami we make with the left overs front butchering pigs for salami...buy the way we also eat salami cured with salt only no curing agents... n we aren't dead yet...I use to hate dandelion as a kid now I can't wait for spring cause of them...a side note my city dwelling wife...now eats weird crap we make n is a complete convert

[ghogAg]

I prefer Dandelion raw and like other herbs and vegetables that is the most nutritious way. Heat tends to be a bad thing.

[Chefsimms]

Makes good wine too.

It dose make very good wine or vinegar...

[bambam55]

the dandelion can be eaten all year long it get alittle tough later in the year also alittle bitter the trick to that is ot boil it 2-3 times dumping all the previous water out and starting with fresh water each time add alittle butter or vinegar and that's some good eatens

[merlin1358]

About all I have growing in my yard right now is dandelions and puff balls, could make a salad for the whole neighborhood.

[preppinmomma]

My fifth grade teacher bribed us all with no homework for a week in exchange for bags of dandelions. He made wine. I should give it a try.

[Griptilian]

We've been eating dandelions for a while due to my son's condition. We usually buy them at Whole Foods & steam them up. You're right, can't eat them when your yard has been sprayed with chemicals. They're good for you!

[survivalguy]

Dandelions are great and overlooked alot you can eat the whole plant minus the stem and bottom of the flower (green part flower comes from) eat them young when you first see them popping up the leaves are easy to identify (being in a saw tooth pattern) the leaves can be eaten raw the roots just boil like carrots or dry them up using a hot rock or the sun pound them to a powder (or as close as you can get) and steep in hot water for a really good drink (they call it coffee doesn't taste like it to me) flowers of the plant can be eaten raw in salads or made into wine (there are instructions all over the net for this) the goo from the stem can be used as glue (only read about this never tried it) ... the only draw back to this plant that I have found is the older the plant the more bitter is is but you can take care of that by boiling the leaves (takes out alot of the bitter taste)

When I was younger and my grandmother was alive she used to make ham and dandelions for us on a Sunday (MMMM good stuff!) Don't just keep mowing them over pick a few and try them but if you use chemicals on your lawn leave them alone!

[sassy]

I have eaten the flowers and love them but I always fried them in butter or margarine. Soak flowers in salt water drip dry dip in salted flower and fry till brown and crispy. Kind of tastes like popcorn. But if you are short of butter I just saw a good idea to make them into fritters either by dipping in a fritter batter or pulling flowers apart and putting them in the batter and frying it. I think I will try that this summer. I have not tried to eat the leaves yet.

[stairman]

Its a sure way to identify them when they flower but the leaves are more bitter. As stated batter the flowers for fritters but avoid the center. They are very good for you, its rediculous how people poison this natural medicine. A little bitterness is helpful in stimulating and cleansing the liver. Never used the root yet for coffee though.http://www.leaflady.org/health_benef...dandelions.htm

[Iron mike]

Its crazy most people view them as menace I use to be one I will be looking a whole lot closer now that's for sure

[mountain1]

i just made a nice batch of mustard greens with ham hock, onions, garlic, 1 qt hot peepers w/sauce, and dandelions greens thrown in to the mix.
delicious...i ate off it for 2 days and still was able to can 7 qts..

[countryboy6685]

I found a nifty youtube channel called Depression Cooking with Clara. She made dandelion greens look like ribeye steak. I want out to my vast front yard and picked a bunch and steamed them and ate them with vinegar....blossoms, leaves, stem, and all. If you get them young enough they are not bitter. The older ones become bitter. I've read somewhere about making them tender again by covering them for a couple days. I need to find that article, but it shows how to extend the season.
I was quite pleased with the taste, and have also enjoyed sitting on the fishing bank popping clover buds into my mouth like candy. So many edible treasures on God's green earth. People come to my house and tell me about how I should spray and use lawn services. I tell them they are crazy, I don't want to poison my food plot. Then they roll their eyes at me. Closed minds don't let any light in.

Oh every word you have said is so true . Thanks to all for the great info I am going to try some myself this weekend .
Robert W

[ttsearcher]

I found a nifty youtube channel called Depression Cooking with Clara. She made dandelion greens look like ribeye steak. I want out to my vast front yard and picked a bunch and steamed them and ate them with vinegar....blossoms, leaves, stem, and all. If you get them young enough they are not bitter. The older ones become bitter. I've read somewhere about making them tender again by covering them for a couple days. I need to find that article, but it shows how to extend the season.
I was quite pleased with the taste, and have also enjoyed sitting on the fishing bank popping clover buds into my mouth like candy. So many edible treasures on God's green earth. People come to my house and tell me about how I should spray and use lawn services. I tell them they are crazy, I don't want to poison my food plot. Then they roll their eyes at me. Closed minds don't let any light in.

[Scottishblacksmith]

The milky "sap" in the Dandelion makes the stem inedible, the blossoms can be dipped in egg, then flower and deep fried( bite off the yellow petals to eat), the leaves are excellent early in the growing season ( the can get bitter with longer growing times ) though changes of water will help. The cooked greens remind me of spinach, my Grandmother used to send me out to get some for dinner when I was 5 yrs old.