日本語版

dandelion root

ingredient / ingredient-dandelion-root

タンポポの根 / Taraxacum officinale

Dandelion root. Bitter-related constituents are organized in the EMA assessment report on the whole plant with root, while the boundary between food use and raw material for medicines is maintained.

On this page (5 sections)
  1. Overview
  2. Sources for this overview (2)
  3. Topic hubs
  4. Related entries (10)
  5. Composition and content (1)
↑

Reading the bitterness

The root of dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is a food ingredient whose bitterness-related constituents are organized in the EMA (European Medicines Agency) assessment report on the dried whole plant with root. The report relates the bitterness of the leaves and root to taraxinic acid β-D-glucopyranosyl ester and 11β,13-dihydrolactucin. However, this is not a sensory test targeting the root alone, but an integration of literature on the whole plant with root; differences by plant part and collection period have not been fixed.

A 2021 study reports that adding 4% or more dried dandelion root to wheat dough produced a distinctive aroma and a clearly bitter aftertaste, and explains this as being due to sesquiterpene lactones, bitter substances contained in Taraxacum officinale. The same study gives 3% or less as the recommended upper limit for addition.

This result is a measurement by a sensory-evaluation panel of wheat bread with dried dandelion root added, and is not a measurement evaluating dandelion root itself on its own. Details of the panel size and training method have also not been confirmed within the scope of this study.

Sources for this overview

  1. Assessment report on Taraxacum officinale Weber ex Wigg., radix cum herba

    European Medicines Agency; Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products / 2009 / government document / full text checked

    Checked for this overview: Adopted the names of the bitter constituents and the limits of the evaluation scope.

  2. Effect of the Addition of Dried Dandelion Roots (Taraxacum officinale F. H. Wigg.) on Wheat Dough and Bread Properties

    Cacak-Pietrzak G; et al. / 2021 / journal article / full text checked

    Checked for this overview: Adopted the threshold for bitterness expression in the bread-addition test. / Adopted the description of the sensory-evaluation subject and its limits.

Structured claims — open a section to read each claim's confidence, evidence and limits

Composition and content (1)

dandelion root — key compounds involved in bitterness: Taraxinic acid β-D-glucopyranosyl ester and 11β,13-dihydrolactucincontextual

Scope: A literature synthesis of the leaves and root, within the dried whole plant with root, in the EMA assessment report

Note: Not a direct sensory test of the root alone; a compositional summary from an official assessment report.

Context: The assessment report links the bitterness of the leaves and root to taraxinic acid glycosides and 11β,13-dihydrolactucin.
Limitations: Not a sensory reconstitution test of the root alone; plant-part and seasonal differences are not fixed.
Source: Assessment report on Taraxacum officinale Weber ex Wigg., radix cum herba (European Medicines Agency; Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products, 2009) · full text checked
Context: In bread in which dried dandelion root replaced 4% or more of the flour weight, "an unusual smell and a distinct bitter aftertaste were perceptible," which the authors attribute, citing earlier literature, to "the presence of sesquiterpene lactones, bitter-tasting substances found in TO." A recommended upper limit of 3 g per 100 g flour is given.
Limitations: A sensory evaluation of bread with root added, not a sensory measurement of the root's bitterness itself. The panel was 55 people (aged 23-58, no training described) using a 9-point hedonic scale; bitterness is not a separately rated item but a statement in the text (item scores in Fig. 2 were not viewed). The paper says all determinations were done in a minimum of 3 replicates, but the replication unit for sensory is not stated. Attributing the bitterness to sesquiterpene lactones is a discussion citing earlier literature, not isolation, quantification or causal testing in this study.
Source: Effect of the Addition of Dried Dandelion Roots (Taraxacum officinale F. H. Wigg.) on Wheat Dough and Bread Properties (Cacak-Pietrzak G; et al., 2021) · full text checked
Show dataingredient-dandelion-root —has_key_bitter_organoleptics→ (the claim sentence above)
claim: clm-dandelion-root-bitter-compounds / type: composition / updated: 2026-08-31

↑ Top of page · ← Encyclopedia (English entries)