If asked to identify the most widely used ingredients in cooking, I would select the onion family – onions, garlic, shallots, leeks and chives.

Onion plants contain sulphurous, volatile oils, which are believed to be the source for inducing tears and irritating the membranes of both our mouth and nose. Although these vegetables are enjoyed by most taste buds, there is certainly no love lost between them and those around us after eating. This love and hate relationship between our pungent breath and those around us is best summed up in the martial epigram which says, “He who bears chives on his breath is safe from being kissed to death.”

Onion’s Versatility Makes It A Popular Flavour Worldwide

Photo Courtesy of Sanja Gjenero @ 2008 Sanja Gjenero

The onion, which is frequently used in kitchens throughout the world, is one of the most versatile vegetables around. They can be eaten raw in a salad or as a topping on a sandwich; roasted, whole or cut in half, with poultry or beef entrees; simmered in stews or curries; or used as a flavouring or seasoning ingredient.

In some parts of the world both professional chefs and homemakers rely heavily on onion plants. In Louisiana, many dishes begin with simmering chopped onion, celery and red bell pepper. In the Asian countries of Malaysia and Indonesia many of dishes start with sautéing onions and garlic, which are first blended or pounded with a mortar and pestle into a thick paste consistency. How differently too would are beloved Italian dishes be without the garlic bulb? Mexican and Spanish salsas would be less flavourful if not for the onion. Enjoying an authentic bowl of French Onion Soup would be impossible without it’s slices of onion. Truly this is a vegetable our taste buds can’t afford to be listed as endangered or extinct.

Some Bulbs From The Onion Family Can Be Used Outside the Kitchen

Besides flavouring foods some members of the onion family are also credited with having medicinal and other unusual properties. Crazy as it may sound, some claim rubbing an onion that has been cut in half on your head serves as a home treatment for thinning hair. Others claim garlic to be an effective home remedy for warding off hay fever, curing frostbite and relieving back aches. Scientific studies have shown that allicin, a component found in the garlic bulb, inhibits bacterial growth and destroys fungi and yeast in the body. Other studies show that garlic reduces cholesterol and the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Obliterating The Offensive Aroma

For those who oppose onion breath, I have found chomping on a few sprigs of parsley after eating helps to freshen the mouth. To remove the smell of onions from hands try rubbing a little table salt into wet palms followed with a good soapy washing. The teary eye syndrome can be avoided by soaking onions, which have had the skin removed, in cold water for 5 or 10 minutes before cutting into them.

Onions To The Rescue

I find the onion bulb a delicious quick fix to the unexpected dinner dilemma on those evenings when defrosting the entrée was forgotten in the morning. On those occasions my underground friend is always close by for a last minute rescue in the form of Onion Pie or Onion Soup served with a tossed salad.

Onion Pie

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 6 medium onions, peeled and sliced
• 1 ½ cups evaporated milk
• 5 eggs, beaten
• 1 9-inch pie shell
• 6 slices bacon, cooked, drained and crumbled
• parsley
• paprika

Method:

Melt butter or margarine in medium-sized saucepan. Add onions and sauté for 15 minutes over low heat, stirring occasionally. Drain onions. Combine onions with evaporated milk and eggs. Pour mixture into pie shell. Sprinkle with parsley, paprika and crumbled bacon. Bake in pre-heated 350° oven for 50 to 60 minutes, or when a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Onion Soup

Ingredients:

• 4 large onions, sliced and separated into rings
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 6 cups water
• 2 tablespoons beef bouillon granules
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 hard rolls sliced in half and toasted
• Parmesan cheese, grated
• Mozzarella cheese, grated

Method:

Cook sliced onions in butter or margarine in large saucepan until onion is tender and lightly browned. Stir in water, bouillon granules and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to boiling. Meanwhile sprinkle bread with Parmesan cheese and toast in 350° oven on a cookie sheet for 10 to 15 minutes until golden brown. Place toasted bread in ovenproof soup bowls and ladle onion soup on top. Sprinkle Mozzarella cheese across the top of each bowl. Place bowls in 450° oven for about 10 minutes until the cheese melts and is lightly browned.