SPICES, MEDICINAL AND AROMATİC PLANTS
TARAXACUM OFFICINALE (DANDELION)
Taraxacum officinale, the common dandelion (often simply called "dandelion"), is a flowering herbaceous perennial plant of the family Asteraceae .Dandelion, which has a high nutritional value, is one of the best natural potassium sources because it contains a high proportion of potassium up to 5%.It is also rich in vitamin A, vitamin C and nicotinic acid and calcium and other minerals. It also contains compounds such as torexacin, retinol, levulin, inulin.The plant has several culinary uses. The specific name officinalis refers to its value as a medicinal herb, and is derived from the word opificina, later officina, meaning a workshop or pharmacy. The flowers are used to make dandelion wine, the greens are used in salads, the roots have been used to make a coffee substitute (when baked and ground into powder).
