How To Make Chicory Coffee at Home: Simple Easy Recipes Have you ever looked at a coffee shop menu and wondered what the chicory coffee was? This rich earthy coffee, obtained from the chicory plant’s roasted roots, has existed for centuries. Coffee lovers have long used it as an inexpensive way to expand the coffee offering, and many have grown to appreciate the taste of this unique plant. It is prevalent and enjoyed by many New Orleans natives. Plus, it contains less caffeine than regular coffee!
Fortunately, you won’t have to fly to the French Quarter to try this unique coffee. We will show you an easy way to make chicory coffee at home. Let’s start!
What is Chicory?
The common chicory, Cichorium intybus, is a plant of the dandelion family that has a somewhat shrubby appearance. Depending on the location and quality of the soil, it can grow to over a meter. It blooms in the same shade of blue as the cornflower or the clear summer sky.
But if you have it as a herb, it is almost impossible to get rid of it. If you try to break it, it will fold. It is tough to remove it with the root (which we will try later), and if you cut it, it grows back. The medicinal part is mainly at the root, but its collection requires adequate tools. Before going in search of chicory, don’t forget to take it with you.
What is Chicory Coffee?
Chicory coffee is obtained from dried and roasted chicory roots.
The roasted root is subsequently ground and turns into a coffee-like drink. It can be used alone or mixed with black coffee. It smells a bit like coffee and has a slightly sweet, nutty, and woody aroma. Chicory coffee does not contain caffeine, allowing it to be used by people who want to reduce caffeine consumption or at night.
How to Make Chicory Coffee: Simple Easy Recipes
Fortunately, you can prepare your chicory coffee at home. Once you have the ground chicory root, you can prepare and serve it in various ways. But first, you have to meet all your needs.
Things you will need
To prepare a chicory coffee, you will need the following:
- Chicory Roots: Since there are several varieties of chicory plants, you can choose the one you can get. Wild chicory grows freely in the U.S., So look for a tall plant with a blue flower. If you can’t get wild chicory, you can also use an endive root (even from the chicory family).
- Baking tray or low baking tray: you will have to roast the root pieces, just like with raw coffee beans.
- A strawberry grinder: you will have to grind the chicory to prepare the right coffee. If you don’t have a grinder, you can manually turn the root into powder, for example, with mortar and mortar.
- Regular coffee (optional): if you want to add coffee to the chicory drink.
- Milk (optional): you will need milk if you want to prepare the café con Leche chicory, one of the famous variants of this coffee.
- Coffee pot: it can be any device you use to prepare your coffee, such as a French press, a casting machine, an espresso machine, or another.
Step by Step Guide on How To Make Chicory Coffee at Home
Now that you have all the ingredients, you can prepare your delicacy. This is all that you need to do:
- Cut the roots into equal particles with a knife. The origins are sturdy, so you’ll need a sharp knife, especially since the pieces shouldn’t be longer than 1 inch. If you don’t cut them to the same size, they may not roast evenly.
- Roast the pieces of chicory. Place them on a shallow baking sheet or baking sheet and put them in the oven. Roast them at 350 degrees until their color turns golden brown. If you can smell the coffee, it means they are gone.
- Grind the roots. Put the roasted chicory roots in your coffee grinder and coarsely grind them while grinding the coffee beans. Ideally, it should be a fine grind if you do them in an espresso machine or a coarser grind if you have a French press, etc.
- Mix the chicory with the ground coffee. The proportion depends on you. If you want the taste of coffee without caffeine stimulation, you can try a 4: 1 ratio between chicory and coffee. Sometimes, a 2: 3 mix of chicory and coffee is right if you gradually reduce your caffeine intake. If you want to extend your coffee supply for a more extended period, adding four-fifths of chicory would suffice. Alternatively, there is no need to add coffee for a real chicory coffee.
- Grind the roots. Put the roasted chicory roots in your coffee grinder and grind ingeniously.
- Prepare your coffee. Use the mixture of chicory and coffee powder to brew coffee as you would regularly. All other factors, such as time or technique, should be the same.
- Add some frothy milk, condiments, or flavorings to improve the aroma, and serve your coffee with chicory root.
What about Fresh Chicory Root?
Although chicory plants are not native to the United States, they grow in the wild. You can also grow chicory on your own. If you have fresh chicory roots, you can roast them in the oven at 300 ° F for an hour. Once they are golden brown, let them cool and grind with the same consistency as your coffee. Mix, prepare, and enjoy!
If you use chicory granules or home-roasted chicory root, the intensity of the chicory’s flavor will be entirely in your hands, be it just a touch of flavor or dominance. You can also buy pre-blended coffee and chicory blends. While this doesn’t give you maximum control over flavor or strength, it’s a convenient option if you find a brand you like.
Healthy Benefits of Chicory
- Caffeine-free chicory coffee is an excellent alternative for those who want to reduce their caffeine intake. It is much better to complement that decaffeinated coffee since it lowers blood sugar and has anti-inflammatory properties.
- It contains prebiotic fiber inulin that improves intestinal health and is related to weight loss.
- This study suggests that inulin improves carbohydrate metabolism, and therefore helps control blood sugar.
- The anti-inflammatory activity has been found in chicory root, which could be due to the inhibition of various cytokines and their antioxidant effects.
Read more about Simple & Easy Tasty Kahlua Coffee Recipes To Try
When you prepare your coffee with chicory, try to flavor it with some refined additions. If you know how to make a coffee with Leche, you can also try a late chicory coffee. Since there is no difference between serving this coffee and regular coffee, you can experiment similarly. Who knows, maybe you end up loving chicory more than coffee itself.
