“Banish (the onion) from the kitchen and the pleasure flies with it. Its presence lends color and enchantment to the most modest dish; its absence reduces the rarest delicacy to hopeless insipidity, and dinner to despair.”
Elizabeth Robbins Pennell, American columnist
Take away my onions, garlic, leeks or shallots and I would be hard pressed to cook. One or more of these odiferous alliums form the basis of many a savory dish. Being a staple food, edible Alliums are fundamental to cooking. Aside from forming the flavor basis for everything from soups to stews, sauces, stuffings, casseroles and savory pies, these aromatic edibles are used in numerous other preparations either alone or in tandem with other ingredients. They can be roasted, baked, fried, sautéed, grilled, braised, stewed, pickled, marinated or simply used in a raw state. When you think about the myriad of cooking applications it is mind boggling.
Onions, green onions, shallots, garlic and leeks have been used as a food for millennia dating back to 5000 BC. There is, however, no conclusive opinion that pinpoints an exact location and time of birth. Ancient Egyptians worshiped them; Greek and Roman athletes revered them; people in the Middle Ages paid rent with them. Modern nutritionists tout so many health benefits of consuming them that it reads like a medical journal – sulfur compounds, chromium, lowers total cholesterol and triglycerides, antioxidants, vitamins B-6 and C, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial.
Take away my onions, garlic, leeks or shallots and I would be hard pressed to cook. One or more of these odiferous alliums form the basis of many a savory dish. Being a staple food, edible Alliums are fundamental to cooking. Aside from forming the flavor basis for everything from soups to stews, sauces, stuffings, casseroles and savory pies, these aromatic edibles are used in numerous other preparations either alone or in tandem with other ingredients. They can be roasted, baked, fried, sautéed, grilled, braised, stewed, pickled, marinated or simply used in a raw state. When you think about the myriad of cooking applications it is mind boggling.
Onions, green onions, shallots, garlic and leeks have been used as a food for millennia dating back to 5000 BC. There is, however, no conclusive opinion that pinpoints an exact location and time of birth. Ancient Egyptians worshiped them; Greek and Roman athletes revered them; people in the Middle Ages paid rent with them. Modern nutritionists tout so many health benefits of consuming them that it reads like a medical journal – sulfur compounds, chromium, lowers total cholesterol and triglycerides, antioxidants, vitamins B-6 and C, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial.
Odiferous Allium thy taste is sweet
When on my plate commence to eat
But flooding tears roll down my cheek,
While mincing thee provoke the air
Doest sting my eyes and make me weep.
Many plants of the genus Allium are known by the common name onion but this usually refers to Allium cepa, the globe onion, bulb onion, garden onion or shallot. As anyone who has chopped onions knows, they can bring tears to your eyes. As onions are cut, cells are broken causing a complex chemical reaction with sulfur based acids present in the onion. These acids turn volatile reaching the nerve endings of the eye making them sting. Tear glands produce tears to flush out the irritant. Using a sharp knife helps to minimize this reaction as does rinsing the onion in cold water after peeling. The best advice is just to do the task and get it over with.
Onions regulate stages of growth by the duration of the light/dark cycle at the particular time of year they are growing, thus they are categorized as long day, short day and day neutral. The amount of growth and development prior to bulbing will determine the bulb size. Long day varieties grow north of the Kansas/Oklahoma border so they are the best choice for gardeners in our local. Plant them as early as possible in spring from seed, sets or transplants to obtain growth prior to the longest day when they begin to bulb. Short day varieties, best suited for the South, need to be planted in the fall to obtain enough growth to make a large bulb earlier in the year when the days are shorter. Day neutral onions can be grown anywhere. Some onion varieties are grown strictly for fresh use (i.e. Walla Walla) and some for storage (i.e. Copra). Some are sweet in flavor and others hot. Onions grown from sets tend to prematurely bolt. Seed grown onions, whether direct seeded or transplants, are generally good keepers.
But in my garden you shall abide
In place of honor there,
An ode to you majestic lords
And royal ladies fair,
As I shall reap the bounty and harvest you with pride
Onion nomenclature can be quite confusing at times especially when it comes to describing shallots, scallions or green onions. The term shallot is actually used to describe two different Allium species – the French grey shallot, true shallot or grisell (Allium oschanirii) and the shallot or multiplier onion (Allium cepa var. aggregatum). Shallots and multiplier onions form a cluster of underground bulbs from each single bulb planted, much like garlic. To add to our bewilderment, the term shallot is confused with scallion. In some countries green onions are shallots and shallots are referred to by alternative names such as eschallot.
The Welsh onion (Allium fistulosum) does not develop bulbs and possess hollow leaves and scapes. In the vernacular these are Japanese bunching onions, green onions, spring onions and scallions (the latter three terms are sometimes applied to immature bulbing onions as well). Welsh doesn’t mean it comes from Wales but preserves the meaning of the Old English word meaning foreign, the species having originated in Asia.
The Tree Onion is a garden oddity being a cultivar-cross of Allium cepa and Allium fistulosum. Also called Top onion, Topset onion, Walking onion or Egyptian onion, this is an onion with a bunch of bulblets where a normal onion would have flowers. They can sprout and grow while still on the stalk, bending down under the weight giving rise to the name walking onion.
Garlic (Allium sativum) needs no introduction. It comes in two types: Softneck (subsp. sativum) and Hardneck (subsp. ophioscorodon). Softneck garlic produces 6-18 cloves in several layers around a soft central stem, has the best storage qualities and is great for braiding. Hardneck garlic typically produces 5-9 cloves per head which grow in a single circle around a central woody stem attempting to produce a flower stalk. The range and quality of flavor they exhibit is outstanding but hardneck types have a shorter storage life than softneck types.
Elephant garlic (Allium porrum var. ampeloprasum) does need an introduction or at least an explanation. Not garlic at all it is related to garden leeks. It takes two years to get cloves, the first year yielding only a single clove. This plant has a tall, solid, flowering stalk and broad flat leaves much like those of a leek with a flavor milder than garlic. If left alone, it will spread into a clump with many flowering heads making a lovely ornamental.
Leeks (Allium porrum) produce a long cylinder of bundled leaf sheaths which are blanched by hilling. The edible portion of the leek is the white base and light green stalk. Summer leeks are harvested young and in the season when planted. Over-wintering leeks are planted to harvest in the winter or the following spring. Leeks can be bunched and harvested early when they are about the size of a pencil or can be thinned and allowed to grow to a much larger mature size.
With some careful planning, one or more members of the Allium family can be grown in our gardens year round. Techniques and parameters for growing onions and other Alliums can be found in any good vegetable gardening book worth the paper it’s written on and the information available is encyclopedic. They all require well-dug, loose soil amended with lots of organic material, the same mantra we use for growing all of our vegetables. For a quick reference on growing requirements, check out the catalogue from Territorial Seed as well as the OSU extension web site (document EC 1231).
Oh leeks so sweet and onions strong, oh garlic’s pungent air;
Deprive me of the stinking rose
This life I should despair.
Carl Sandburg, the great American poet wrote: “Life is like an onion. You peel it off one layer at a time; and sometimes you weep.”
Take away my onions, garlic, leeks or shallots – that’s enough to make me cry!
When on my plate commence to eat
But flooding tears roll down my cheek,
While mincing thee provoke the air
Doest sting my eyes and make me weep.
Many plants of the genus Allium are known by the common name onion but this usually refers to Allium cepa, the globe onion, bulb onion, garden onion or shallot. As anyone who has chopped onions knows, they can bring tears to your eyes. As onions are cut, cells are broken causing a complex chemical reaction with sulfur based acids present in the onion. These acids turn volatile reaching the nerve endings of the eye making them sting. Tear glands produce tears to flush out the irritant. Using a sharp knife helps to minimize this reaction as does rinsing the onion in cold water after peeling. The best advice is just to do the task and get it over with.
Onions regulate stages of growth by the duration of the light/dark cycle at the particular time of year they are growing, thus they are categorized as long day, short day and day neutral. The amount of growth and development prior to bulbing will determine the bulb size. Long day varieties grow north of the Kansas/Oklahoma border so they are the best choice for gardeners in our local. Plant them as early as possible in spring from seed, sets or transplants to obtain growth prior to the longest day when they begin to bulb. Short day varieties, best suited for the South, need to be planted in the fall to obtain enough growth to make a large bulb earlier in the year when the days are shorter. Day neutral onions can be grown anywhere. Some onion varieties are grown strictly for fresh use (i.e. Walla Walla) and some for storage (i.e. Copra). Some are sweet in flavor and others hot. Onions grown from sets tend to prematurely bolt. Seed grown onions, whether direct seeded or transplants, are generally good keepers.
But in my garden you shall abide
In place of honor there,
An ode to you majestic lords
And royal ladies fair,
As I shall reap the bounty and harvest you with pride
Onion nomenclature can be quite confusing at times especially when it comes to describing shallots, scallions or green onions. The term shallot is actually used to describe two different Allium species – the French grey shallot, true shallot or grisell (Allium oschanirii) and the shallot or multiplier onion (Allium cepa var. aggregatum). Shallots and multiplier onions form a cluster of underground bulbs from each single bulb planted, much like garlic. To add to our bewilderment, the term shallot is confused with scallion. In some countries green onions are shallots and shallots are referred to by alternative names such as eschallot.
The Welsh onion (Allium fistulosum) does not develop bulbs and possess hollow leaves and scapes. In the vernacular these are Japanese bunching onions, green onions, spring onions and scallions (the latter three terms are sometimes applied to immature bulbing onions as well). Welsh doesn’t mean it comes from Wales but preserves the meaning of the Old English word meaning foreign, the species having originated in Asia.
The Tree Onion is a garden oddity being a cultivar-cross of Allium cepa and Allium fistulosum. Also called Top onion, Topset onion, Walking onion or Egyptian onion, this is an onion with a bunch of bulblets where a normal onion would have flowers. They can sprout and grow while still on the stalk, bending down under the weight giving rise to the name walking onion.
Garlic (Allium sativum) needs no introduction. It comes in two types: Softneck (subsp. sativum) and Hardneck (subsp. ophioscorodon). Softneck garlic produces 6-18 cloves in several layers around a soft central stem, has the best storage qualities and is great for braiding. Hardneck garlic typically produces 5-9 cloves per head which grow in a single circle around a central woody stem attempting to produce a flower stalk. The range and quality of flavor they exhibit is outstanding but hardneck types have a shorter storage life than softneck types.
Elephant garlic (Allium porrum var. ampeloprasum) does need an introduction or at least an explanation. Not garlic at all it is related to garden leeks. It takes two years to get cloves, the first year yielding only a single clove. This plant has a tall, solid, flowering stalk and broad flat leaves much like those of a leek with a flavor milder than garlic. If left alone, it will spread into a clump with many flowering heads making a lovely ornamental.
Leeks (Allium porrum) produce a long cylinder of bundled leaf sheaths which are blanched by hilling. The edible portion of the leek is the white base and light green stalk. Summer leeks are harvested young and in the season when planted. Over-wintering leeks are planted to harvest in the winter or the following spring. Leeks can be bunched and harvested early when they are about the size of a pencil or can be thinned and allowed to grow to a much larger mature size.
With some careful planning, one or more members of the Allium family can be grown in our gardens year round. Techniques and parameters for growing onions and other Alliums can be found in any good vegetable gardening book worth the paper it’s written on and the information available is encyclopedic. They all require well-dug, loose soil amended with lots of organic material, the same mantra we use for growing all of our vegetables. For a quick reference on growing requirements, check out the catalogue from Territorial Seed as well as the OSU extension web site (document EC 1231).
Oh leeks so sweet and onions strong, oh garlic’s pungent air;
Deprive me of the stinking rose
This life I should despair.
Carl Sandburg, the great American poet wrote: “Life is like an onion. You peel it off one layer at a time; and sometimes you weep.”
Take away my onions, garlic, leeks or shallots – that’s enough to make me cry!
