Herb/Food/Health
Harvesting Dandelion: A Gift from Nature for Healing and Nourishing
And how I started my seasonal harvest in my backyard
It’s Spring, time for me to harvest Dandelion 蒲公英 (pú gōng yīng) in my backyard.
I started this seasonal harvest a couple of years ago, intrigued by a minor ailment my husband had.
He was complaining about a mouth ulcer at the time. Then an idea just struck me: why not take some dandelion? The greens happened to be available, growing around the house without an invitation. Some even landed inside our vegetable bed unapologetically.
To help the healing of his mouth ulcer, I used the leaves to make the dandelion decoction and also asked him to rinse his mouth with it. Thankfully, the ailment went away after a few days.
Since then, I started to collect dandelions seasonally in my backyard, which is free of pesticides. I would air-dry the leaves after washing them thoroughly, then store them away. This year I’ve also combined air-dry and air-fryer with the lowest setting of the dehydrate function to dry leaves faster.
Dandelion: a medical herb
If you think dandelion is just another weed, you’re not alone. Many people may also have that perception.
I came to know about the therapeutic function of Dandelion from my Dad’s book on Food and Medicine. It belongs to the category called 药食同源 in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), meaning it is edible and can also be used as medicine to promote health.
According to the description, key features of dandelion include:
1. Taste: Bitter
2. Nature: Cold
3. Meridian category (归经): Liver, Stomach
4. Therapeutic function: Clearing heat and detoxifying, reducing dampness and promoting urination, improving liver function and vision, promoting bile secretion, strengthening the stomach function, plus a slight laxative effect.
In the college textbook “Chinese Materia Medica (中药学)”, dandelion is listed under the category of Clearing Heat and Detoxifying (清热解毒药). It turns out Dandelion is a well-known herb in TCM since ancient times, recorded as early as the Tang dynasty in “Tang Materia Medica” (Tang Bencao) in the 7th century.
In the view of TCM, the most common causes of mouth ulcers are closely associated with excess heat from the Stomach, dampness from the Spleen, as well as heat accumulated due to emotional stress. These factors could disrupt the microcirculation, leading to stagnation of Qi and blood in the body and inflammation. Dandelion fits nicely to treat this ailment.
Due to the variety of therapeutic effects, dandelion is often used together with a few other herbs in TCM prescriptions for quite a few ailments or as a supplement. Many of dandelion’s therapeutic function has also been confirmed by western scholars since the 16th century.
Dandelion: a healthy food addition
Dandelion leaf has a slightly bitter and refreshing flavor, also a rich source of vitamins and minerals, “They’re probably the most nutritionally dense green you can eat — outstripping even kale or spinach”. You may find fresh dandelion greens in the produce section of some local grocery stores.
Tender dandelion leaf is not as bitter and can be eaten raw in salads. In Asian-style salad, we would blanch it first, which helps the disinfection and also reduce a bit of the bitter taste. It can also be stir-fried as a vegetable. I’ve heard some folks even use minced dandelion greens as one ingredient in dumplings.
Once in a while, I make dandelion tea with the leaves. It’s indeed my cup of tea, as the taste is similar to certain green tea.
Beyond the typical applications, I’ve also come up with a unique use of dandelion: after boiling and simmering dandelion leaves in water, I would take the juice, soak cotton pads, then put the warm and moisturized pads on my eyes for a couple of minutes. That’s my favorite treat to pamper my tired eyes.
Dandelion is a healthy food addition also with some impressive therapeutic functions. It has been eaten for centuries.
It’s worth noting though that dandelion may not be suitable for everyone to use frequently. According to TCM, people with Yang deficiency constitution or Spleen/Stomach deficiency should avoid too much consumption of dandelion.
It’s a good practice to take precautions and consult healthcare professionals for medical purposes about dandelion and other herbal remedies.
Thanks for reading. This post is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered health advice.
I write about culture, work-life learning, and the ancient wisdom of Traditional Chinese Medicine for better living. Click here if you would like to be notified when I publish.
