Believe it or not, I actually hate onions in my food. Whenever I detect the sharp and pungent flavor of an onion in my meal, I cringe to myself a little and slowly pick through my food, trying to avoid the onions at all costs. So why am I writing an article about them? Well as it turns out, I’m alone in my opinion on onions…and the rest of you Americans and world-class citizens love the bulby oddities. So who am I to deny you an onion education -we wouldn't want you crying over an onion, would we? Oh but you already have. So here's my guide to the onion. I hope you find it helpful as we'll go through some of its history, some interesting facts, and of course - the best of the best onion recipes.
The National Onion Association classifies onions into two categories: spring/summer fresh onions and the fall/winter storage variety. These fresher onions are available April through August while the dryer storage onions turn up more often August through April. Both come in red, white and yellow forms, but the spring/summer onions are said to be sweeter, moister, and milder. Therefore used in sweeter dishes, the fall/winter kind is used for savory dishes.
The most common onion is the yellow onion. Not only is most of American onion production (for more information on domestic onion production, click here) focused on yellow onions, but their full flavor is suitable for a wide range of cooking, most notable French Onion Soup. Red onions are used more often in salads, and other fresh uses, or for grilling or broiling, according to the National Onion Association. White onions show up quite a bit in Mexican cuisine and have a sweet flavor when sauteed. Others argue All of these varieties range in size – from 1 inch to 4.5 inches in diameter. For a more specific guide to the different varieties of onions including vidalia, walla walla, and Texas, click here.
"Onions should be firm and heavy for their size. Avoid onions that have sprouted or that have an odor, or that have green or moldy blemishes," says Cooks Thesaurus, who offers up some helpful advice on purchasing and cooking onions.
Another way to classify an onion is by its type: bulb, multiplier (a derivation of the bulb onion) or tree onions. The most common form is bulb, which includes the sweet onions like vidalia, and all the colored varieties we’ve just discussed. The top onion producer in 2005, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, was China, followed by India, who was followed by the United States. The third top onion producer, Americans harvested 3.3 million tons of onions in 2005.
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