Best Coffee Substitute

I’ve always been on the lookout for healthier coffee substitutes. I truly enjoyed coffee — that little escape or rather an entrance into the day that I always looked forward to. However, I always knew that coffee was taking more from my body than it was giving back. My adrenals, in particular, seemed to feel it. So I started exploring healthier alternatives. Over time, I tried dandelion root, barley, chicory, and even roasted mullein root. I experimented with roasting various roots, but none of them came close to resembling the familiar flavor of coffee. Among these, chicory root stood out as the winner, although it doesn’t taste like coffee at all—it does, however, have a pleasantly positive effect on the body.

Then, I discovered something quite intriguing called “Lupin Not Coffee.” Sweet lupin beans are roasted and ground in a way similar to coffee. The appearance and aroma are strikingly similar to regular coffee. Preparing it is just as simple: you make it like you would filter coffee. The flavor is earthy and reminiscent of coffee in many ways. If you didn’t know better, you might easily think you were drinking a cup of filter coffee. Personally, I prefer it black because the flavor profile is more intense and satisfying that way. And it appears that lupin coffee was waiting to be rediscovered, with the first known record of lupin coffee dating all the way back to the 19th century.

About Sweet Lupin

Sweet lupin is not the same horticultural lupin that might be growing in your garden. There are multiple Lupin species, but the one specifically used to make coffee—or perhaps more accurately, "loffee’’ must be of the species with low alkaloid (responsible for the bitterness) content. Lupin alkaloids can be toxic in large amounts, but sweet lupins contain little and not all of the quinolizidine alkaloids and therefore are said to be safe.

The most common sweet lupin species include Lupinus angustifolius (commonly known as narrow-leafed or Australian sweet lupin), Lupinus luteus (also called yellow or European sweet lupin), and Lupinus albus (referred to as white lupin). The term "sweet" is used to describe varieties that have low levels of bitter alkaloids, a characteristic that makes them safe and suitable for human consumption as well as for use in animal feed.

Sweet lupin beans are highly nutritious and contain beneficial phytochemicals. Key compounds such as phenols, carotenoids, tocopherols, fatty acids, phytosterols, and bioactive peptides contribute to their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and cholesterol-lowering properties.

So if you are drinking lupin coffee, you can feel good about your choice, because it does not interfere with your nervous system or adrenals the way some other caffeinated drinks might.

And I will surely be looking to get some seeds soon and try to grow a few plants myself.