Are dandelion and bitter lettuce the same plant? What is the difference between the two

In daily life, bitter lettuce and dandelion look quite similar, so in everyday life some people may easily eat these two ingredients as if they were one ingredient. So, is dandelion bitter lettuce?

1. Is dandelion bitter lettuce?

Dandelion is not bitter lettuce; they are two kinds of ingredients. Some people may not be able to tell them apart by appearance, but they differ greatly in both edible value and ways of eating, so be careful when buying or eating bitter lettuce and dandelion in daily life.

2. What is the difference between dandelion and bitter lettuce?

We can distinguish and identify bitter lettuce and dandelion from three aspects: leaves, flowers and composition.

1. Leaf shape

The leaf tips of bitter lettuce are blunt or pointed, with coarse serrated edges arranged along the margin; the upper surface of the leaf is dark green, while the underside is pale green, and the surface has no downy covering.

The leaf tips of dandelion are blunt or extremely pointed, and the leaf margins are wavy; the terminal lobes of dandelion leaves are relatively large, usually triangular or triangular-hastate.

2. Flower color

Bitter lettuce: the involucre of the bitter lettuce flower is linear and very small; the bracts are also very small, so the whole flower is small too. The corolla is bell-shaped and yellow.

Dandelion: the overall color of the flower is white. The involucre of the flower is bell-shaped and pale green overall; it has 2 to 3 layers of bracts. 3. Different composition

The young seedlings of bitter lettuce contain protein, fat, crude fiber, carbohydrates, carotene, vitamins, etc.

Dandelion contains inositol, mannitol, wax alcohol, choline, tartaric acid and other components.