chicory

1. A perennial herb (Cichorium intybus) of the composite family, native to the Old World and widely naturalized in North America, having rayed flower heads with usually blue florets. Also called succory.
2. Any of various forms of this plant cultivated for their edible leaves, such as radicchio.
3. The dried, roasted, ground roots of this plant, used as an adulterant of or substitute for coffee.

[Middle English cicoree (from Old French cichoree) and French chicorée, both from Latin cichorium, cichorēum, from Greek kikhoreia, pl. diminutive of kikhorā.]

A perennial herb, Cichorium intybus (Compositae), with a long taproot, a coarse branching stem, and a basal rosette of numerous leaves. Although the plant is a native of Europe, it has become a common weed in the United States. It is used as a salad plant or for greens. The roasted root is also used as an adulterant of coffee. See also Campanulales.

Witloof or Belgian chicory (Belgian endive in the USA), Cichorium intybus; the root is harvested and grown in the dark to produce bullet-shaped heads of young white leaves (chicons). Also called succory; red variety is radicchio. The leaves are eaten as a salad or braised as a vegetable and the bitter root, dried and partly caramelized, is often added to coffee. A 50-g portion of chicons supplies 1 g of dietary fibre, a little vitamin C, and 5 kcal (20 kJ).

[CHIHK-uh-ree] This relative of the endive has curly, bitter-tasting leaves that are often used as part of a salad or cooked as greens. In the United States, early endive is sometimes erroneously called chicory. Chicory is available year-round. Choose leaves that are brightly colored and crisp. Store unwashed greens in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days. Today's trendy radicchio is a red-leafed Italian chicory. Roasted chicory (also called succory) comes from the roasted, ground roots of some varieties of chicory. It's used as a coffee substitute, and added to some coffees for body and aroma and as an "extender." This coffee-chicory blend is often referred to as "New Orleans" or "Creole" coffee and is a popular beverage in Louisiana.

Description

Chicory (Cichorium intybus) is a herb and root that has been known for its curative benefits since the first century A.D.. It is a member of the Asteraceae family. A scraggly plant with blue flower heads, chicory flourishes in the wild, as well as in gardens all over the world. It may be found in Europe, the Near East, northern and southern Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and North and South America.

The dried leaves and roots of the chicory plant are collected in autumn for medicinal purposes. When flowering, the whole plant is collected and dried. With a height that may reach up to 5 ft (1.5 m), chicory can be recognized by its oblong leaves that resemble a crosscut saw or slit, with numerous stiff hairs on the underside. Chicory, whose common names include succory, chicory root, chicory herb, blue sailors, wild chicory, or hendibeh, is well known for its bitter taste and use as a coffee substitute.

General Use

The ancient Egyptians ate large amounts of chicory because it was believed that the plant could purify the blood and liver, while others have relied on the herb for its power to cure "passions of the heart." Chicory continues to be a popular herbal remedy due to its healing effects on several ailments.

Chicory is taken internally for the following disorders.

• jaundice
• spleen problems
• gallstones
• rheumatism
• gout
• loss of appetite

In addition, the leaves of chicory may also be used as compresses to be applied externally to ease skin inflammations and swellings.

According to folklore, chicory was recommended as a laxative for children, and it is also believed to increase the flow of bile. As a mild diuretic, it increases the elimination of fluid from the body, leading to its use as a treatment for rheumatism and gout.

Women who suffer from premenstrual syndrome (PMS) may find that regular use of chicory root as a bitter and a liver tonic may assist in maintaining hormone balance and lessening the symptoms of PMS. In addition, altering the diet by eating a "bitter" salad that includes fresh dandelion, chicory, and sorrel is believed to strengthen the liver and discourage the growth of candida.

Chicory also supports the body's ability to absorb calcium, a nutrient that helps build and maintain strong teeth and bones. Raftilin inulin and raftilose oligofructose are fibers extracted from chicory root that cannot be digested by the small intestine. Instead, they are fermented by bacteria in the large intestine, leading to the increased absorption of calcium and other minerals. Oligofructose is an example of a prebiotic, or nondigestible food ingredient that benefits health by supporting the growth of one or several types of bacteria in the colon.

A study published in 2002 indicates that inulin appears to lower the risk of colon cancer. The precise nature of its protective effects is not yet known, however.

In addition to enhancing digestive processes, chicory helps to keep the liver healthy. The inclusion of chicory root supplements in the diet supports the proper metabolism of cholesterol.

Preparations

While the medicinal uses of chicory are numerous, the plant is also often used as a food additive, as a flavoring agent, and in meals. Inulin can be used to improve the texture of processed foods as well as sweeten them. It can also be used to make biodegradable nonfood substances with many industrial applications. This versatility is important to environmentalists because chicory is a renewable natural resource.

Wild and cultivated chicory leaves may be added to salads or sautéed and served alone. Moreover, the roasted and ground root of the plant is a common addition to coffee in Europe and in the United States.

Studies have shown that chicory complements coffee when it is used as a supplement due to its lactucin and lactucopicrin. These two substances are responsible for the bitter taste of chicory, and may serve to counteract the stimulating effects of caffeine. Chicory by itself actually has a sedative action on the central nervous system.

Chicory is available over the counter in bulk as green leaves and dried roots. To prepare the herb as a tea, also known as an infusion, for home use: steep 1 tsp (5 ml) rootstock or dried herb with 0.5 cup (4 fl oz) water and strain after 10 minutes. To treat jaundice, spleen problems, gallstones, or gastritis, drink 8-12 oz (225-350 ml) of chicory tea per day.

As a dietary supplement, 1 tsp (5 ml) of juice from chicory stems may be squeezed by hand and taken in milk or water three times a day.

Precautions

Chicory has shown to be safe for a variety of medicinal uses and as a food source. There are no necessary precautions to observe when including the herb in the diet.

Side Effects

There are no known health hazards or side effects when chicory is added to the diet. The only possible minor side effect is skin irritation. If the hands become irritated after handling chicory, it is best to cover them with gloves and treat the affected area as needed.

Resources

Books

The Editors of Time-Life Books. "Chicory." The Medical Advisor: The Complete Guide to Alternative & Conventional Treatments. Richmond, VA: Time-Life Inc., 1996.

Fleming, Thomas. "Cichorium Intybus." PDR for Herbal Medicines, First Edition. Montvale, NJ: Medical Economics Company Inc., 1998.

Periodicals

Chow, J. "Probiotics and Prebiotics: A Brief Overview." Journal of Renal Nutrition 12 (April 2002): 76-86.

Crawford, Sharon. "High Herbs: For Plant Medicine Go to the Mountains." Alive (May 31, 1997): 44–45.

Franck, A., and A. Franck. "Technological Functionality of Inulin and Oligofructose." British Journal of Nutrition 87 (March 2002): Supplement 2, 287-291.

Pool-Zobel, B., B. Pool-Zobel, J. Van Loo, et al. "Experimental Evidences on the Potential of Prebiotic Fructans to Reduce the Risk of Colon Cancer." British Journal of Nutrition 87 (March 2002): Supplement 2, 273-281.

Stengler, Mark. "Blast Cholesterol." Alive (June 30, 1999): 20–21.

Stevens, C. V., A. Meriggi, and K. Booten. "Chemical Modification of Inulin, a Valuable Renewable Resource, and its Industrial Applications." Biomacromolecules 2 (Spring 2001): 1-16.

Organizations

American Botanical Council. P. O. Box 201660. Austin, TX 78720-1660.

[Article by: Beth Kapes; Rebecca J. Frey, PhD]

For more information on chicory, visit Britannica.com.

Tutor's tip: There was a large "chicory" (plant used as a substitute for coffee) plant growing near the "chickery" (the hatchery at a poultry farm).

This article is about the cultivated vegetable called chicon. For the Worldcons named Chicon, see Chicon (Worldcon).

Common Chicory
Common chicory (Cichorium intybus)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae (unranked): Angiosperms (unranked): Eudicots (unranked): Asterids Order: Asterales Family: Asteraceae Tribe: Cichorieae Genus: Cichorium Species: C. intybus
Binomial name
Cichorium intybus L.

Common chicory (Cichorium intybus) is a bushy perennial herb with blue, lavender, or occasionally white flowers. It grows as a wild plant on roadsides in its native Europe, and in North America and Australia, where it has become naturalized. Common chicory is also known as blue sailors, succory, and coffeeweed. It is also called cornflower, although that name is more properly applied to Centaurea cyanus. The cultivated forms are grown for their leaves (var. foliosum), or for the roots (var. sativum), which are baked, ground, and used as a coffee substitute and additive. Common names for varieties of var. foliosum include endive, radicchio, Belgian endive, French endive, red endive, sugarloaf or witloof.

Chicory is also the common name in the US (and in France) for curly endive (Cichorium endivia). There is considerable confusion between Cichorium endivia and Cichorium intybus. ^[1][2]

Contents 1 Leaf chicory 2 Root chicory 3 Agents responsible for bitterness 4 Herbal use 5 Use and toxicity 6 History 7 References 8 See also 9 External links

Leaf chicory

Chicory may be grown for its leaves, eaten raw as a salad. It is generally divided into three types of which there are many varieties^[3]:

• Radicchio usually has variegated red or red and green leaves. Some only refer to the white-veined red leaved type as radicchio. Also known as red endive and red chicory. It has a bitter and spicy taste, which mellows when it is grilled or roasted. It can also be used to add color and zest to salads.

• Sugarloaf looks rather like cos lettuce, with tightly packed leaves.

Witlof

• Belgian endive is also known as French endive, witlof in the Netherlands, witlo(o)f in the USA, chicory in the UK, as witlof in Australia, endive in France, and chicon in parts of Northern France and in Wallonia. It has a small head of cream-coloured, bitter leaves. It is grown completely underground or indoors in the absence of sunlight in order to prevent the leaves from turning green and opening up (etiolation). The plant has to be kept just below the soil surface as it grows, only showing the very tip of the leaves. It is often sold wrapped in blue paper to protect it from light and so preserve its pale colour and delicate flavour. The smooth, creamy white leaves may be served stuffed, baked, boiled, cut and cooked in a milk sauce, or simply cut raw. Slightly bitter, the whiter the leaf, the less bitter the taste. The harder inner part of the stem, at the bottom of the head, should be cut out before cooking to prevent bitterness. Belgium exports chicon/witloof to over 40 different countries.^[4] The technique for growing blanched endives was accidentally discovered in the 1850s in the Josaphat valley in Schaerbeek, Belgium ^[5]. Endive is cultivated for culinary use by cutting the leaves from the growing plant, then keeping the living stem and root in a dark place. A new bud develops but without sunlight it is white and lacks the bitterness of the sun-exposed foliage. Today France is the largest producer of endives.

Flower of Cichorium intybus

Belgian endive

Belgian endive

Although leaf chicory is often called "endive", true endive (Cichorium endivia) is a different species in the genus.

Root chicory

Root chicory (Cichorium intybus var. sativum) has been in cultivation in Europe as a coffee substitute. The roots are baked, ground, and used as a coffee substitute and additive, especially in the Mediterranean region (where the plant is native), although its use as a coffee additive is also very popular in India, parts of Southeast Asia and the American South, particularly in New Orleans. Chicory, with sugar beet and rye was used as an ingredient of the East German Mischkaffee (mixed coffee), introduced during the "coffee crisis" of 1976-9.

Some beer brewers use roasted chicory to add flavor to their stouts.

Around 1970 it was found that the root contains up to 20% inulin, a polysaccharide similar to starch. Since then, new strains have been created, giving root chicory an inulin content comparable to that of sugar beet (around 600 dt/ha). Inulin is mainly found in the plant family Asteraceae as a storage carbohydrate (for example Jerusalem artichoke, dahlia etc.). It is used as a sweetener in the food industry (with a sweetening power approximately 90% less than sucrose)^{[citation needed]} and is sometimes added to yogurts as a prebiotic. Inulin can be converted to fructose and glucose through hydrolysis. Inulin is also gaining popularity as a source of soluble dietary fiber.

Chicory root extract is a dietary supplement or food additive produced by mixing dried, ground, chicory root with water, and removing the insoluble fraction by filtration and centrifugation. Other methods may be used to remove pigments and sugars. Fresh chicory root typically contains, by dry weight, 68% inulin, 14% sucrose, 5% cellulose, 6% protein, 4% ash, and 3% other compounds. Dried chicory root extract contains, by weight, approximately 98% inulin and 2% other compounds.^[6] Fresh chicory root may contain between 13 and 23% inulin, by total weight.^[7]

Agents responsible for bitterness

The bitter substances are primarily the two sesquiterpene lactones Lactucin and Lactucopicrin. Other ingredients are Aesculetin, Aesculin, Cichoriin, Umbelliferone, Scopoletin and 6.7-Dihydrocoumarin and further sesquiterpene lactones and their glycosides. ^[8]

Herbal use

Chicory (especially the flower) was used as a treatment in Germany, and is recorded in many books as an ancient German treatment for everyday ailments. It is variously used as a tonic and appetite stimulant, and as a treatment for gallstones, gastro-enteritis, sinus problems and cuts and bruises. (Howard M. 1987)

Use and toxicity

According to traditional folklore, long-term use of chicory as a coffee substitute may damage human retinal tissue, with dimming of vision over time and other long term effects.^[9] Modern scientific literature contains little or no evidence to support or refute this claim.

Root chicory contains volatile oils similar to those found in plants in the related genus Tanacetum which includes Tansy, and is likewise effective at eliminating intestinal worms. All parts of the plant contain these volatile oils, with the majority of the toxic components concentrated in the plant's root. ^[10]

Chicory is well known for its toxicity to internal parasites. Studies indicate that ingestion of chicory by farm animals results in reduction of worm burdens,^{[11] [12] [13]} which has prompted its widespread use as a forage supplement. There are only a few major companies active in research, development, and production of chicory varieties and selections. Most of them are in New Zealand. Chicory root extract is high in inulin, and used as a high-fiber dietary supplement.

History

The chicory plant is one of the earliest cited in recorded literature. Horace mentions it in reference to his own diet, which he describes as very simple: "Me pascunt olivae, me cichorea, me malvae" ("As for me, olives, endives, and mallows provide sustenance").^[14] Lord Monboddo describes the plant in 1779^[15] as the "chicoree", which the French cultivate as a pot herb. In the Napoleonic Era in France, chicory frequently appeared as either an adulterant in coffee or a coffee substitute; this practice also became common in the United States and the United Kingdom, e.g., in England during the Second World War and in Camp Coffee, a coffee and chicory essence which has been on sale since 1885.

In the United States chicory root has long been used as a substitute for coffee in prisons.^[16]

Chicory is an ingredient in typical Roman recipes, generally fried with garlic and red pepper, with its bitter and spicy taste, often together with meat or potatoes. FAO reports that in 2005, China and the USA were the top producers of lettuce and chicory.^{[citation needed]}

Chicory is also mentioned in certain sericulture (silk-growing) texts. It is said that the primary caretaker of the silkworms, the "silkworm mother" should not eat or even touch it.^{[citation needed]}

The chicory flower is often seen as inspiration for the Romantic concept of the Blue Flower. It was also believed to be able to open locked doors, according to European folklore.^[17]

References

1. ^ http://www.innvista.com/HEALTH/foods/vegetables/chicory.htm
2. ^ http://plantanswers.tamu.edu/vegetables/endive.html
3. ^ http://www.gardenzone.info/crops/index.php?crop=chicory
4. ^ 'Jeannie Bastian'. It Ain’t Chicken. Accessed November 15, 2006.
5. ^ http://www.foodmuseum.com/endive.html
6. ^ Kim, Meehye (1996). "The Water-Soluble Extract of Chicory Reduces Glucose uptake from the Perfused Jejunum in Rats". J. Nutr. 126: 2236-2242. http://jn.nutrition.org/cgi/reprint/126/9/2236.pdf. Retrieved on 2008-08-20. 
7. ^ Wilson, Robert (2004). "Chicory Root Yield and Carbohydrate Composition is Influenced by Cultivar Selection, Planting, and Harvest Date". Crop Sci. 44 (3): 748-752. http://crop.scijournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/44/3/748. Retrieved on 2008-08-20. 
8. ^ Harsh Pal Bais, GA Ravishankar (2001) Cichorium intybus L – cultivation, processing, utility, value addition and biotechnology, with an emphasis on current status and future prospects. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 81, 467-484 (online)
9. ^ A Modern Herbal. New York: Dover Publications. 1931fs. ISBN 0486227987 & 0486227995. 
10. ^ Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West, Gregory L. Tilford, ISBN 0-87842-359-1
11. ^ "Individual administration of three tanniferous forage plants to lambs artificially infected with Haemonchus contortus and Cooperia curticei.". Vet Parasitol. 146 (1-2): 123–34. 2007-05-15. doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2007.01.009. PMID : 17336459. 
12. ^ "The use of chicory for parasite control in organic ewes and their lambs.". Parasitology. 134 (Pt 2): 299–307. February 2007. doi:10.1017/S0031182006001363. PMID : 17032469. 
13. ^ "The effect of chicory ( Cichorium intybus ) and sulla ( Hedysarum coronarium ) on larval development and mucosal cell responses of growing lambs challenged with Teladorsagia circumcincta.". Parasitology. 132 (Pt 3): 419–26. March 2006. doi:10.1017/S0031182005009194. PMID : 16332288. 
14. ^ Horace, Odes 31, ver 15, ca 30 BC
15. ^ Letter from Monboddo to John Hope, 29 April, 1779; reprinted by William Knight 1900 ISBN 1-85506-207-0
16. ^ (a) Delaney, John H. "New York (State). Dept. of Efficiency and Economy Annual Report". Albany New York, 1915, p. 673. Accessed via Google Books.
    (b) "Prison Talk" website; Kentucky section: http://www.prisontalk.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-173368.html.
17. ^ Howard, Michael. Traditional Folk Remedies (Century, 1987), p.120.

See also

• Lettuce
• Olive
• Phytonutrient
• Polyphenol antioxidant

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Common chicory with lavender flowers

Cichorium intybus

Common chicory Cichorium intybus (white form)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Cichorium intybus

Wikiversity has bloom time data for Cichorium intybus on the Bloom Clock

• Herb Teas and old remedies : Chicory (fr.with translator)
• Chicory Coffee - How Does it Taste?
• ITIS 36762
• Chicory photo and description
• Dogfish Head's Chicory Stout
• History of Belgian Endive
• Species of chicory and endive
• Edibility of Chicory: Edible parts and identification of wild Chicory.
• Chicory recipes

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - cikorie, julesalat

Nederlands (Dutch)
witlof, cichorei, andijvie (Amerikaans)

Français (French)
n. - chicorée, endive

Deutsch (German)
n. - Chicorée, Zichorie, Wegwarte, Endivie

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - ραδίκι, πικραλίδα, κιχώρι, σικορέ (ως υποκατάστατο του καφέ)

Italiano (Italian)
cicoria

Português (Portuguese)
n. - chicória (f) (Bot.)

Русский (Russian)
цикорий

Español (Spanish)
n. - achicoria, escarola

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - endiv, frisésallat (am.), cikoria

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
菊苣

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 菊苣

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 치커리(샐러드용 식물)

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - チコリー, キクヂシャ

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) هندباء, نوع منن النباتات‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮עולש, ציקוריה‬

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