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Favourite flavours - onions 

28/5/2016

27 Comments

 
Onions are a staple in my kitchen...
‘BELIEVE it or not, the elegant and beautiful Easter lily and the dry, old smelly onion are close cousins, both coming from the lily family,' medical anthropologist John Heinerman writes in his fascinating Encyclopedia of Fruits & Vegetables (Parker, 1995).

Okay, so onions are a little on the aromatic side, but they taste wonderful and are indispensable as a base flavouring in cooking. And there's something delicious about preparing a winter's meal by gently sautéing, frying or sweating a finely chopped onion in a little oil (perhaps with garlic, celery and carrot).

Onions are among the vegetables that were cultivated by the Egyptians and were used for both food and in mummification (placed in the thorax, pelvis and near the eyes). Slaves building the Great Pyramid are said to have favoured the edible bulb, munching their way through 1,600 “talents” worth of onions, garlic and radishes as they worked.
 
Available varieties of dry onions (that is, those with papery skins which have been left in the ground until their tops died down) include brown, pickling, red, white and yellow. When buying onions, ensure they are dry and firm, and sweet smelling. Reject those which are beginning to sprout or any that have a damp, acrid smell. Store onions in a dry, airy place. Discard any raw onion left over from cooking.
 
Celebrate the flavour and aroma of onions with the recipes below. Incidentally, another tidbit of trivia from Heinerman is that asparagus is also a close cousin to the onion, but without the noxious odour.

CARAMELISED ONIONS
Serve with grilled meats or on top of baked potatoes, or combine with mushrooms and red capsicums to serve with pasta or use as a pizza topping.

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 large onions, sliced finely
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (optional)
 
Heat the oil in a saucepan and add the onions. Cover the pan and allow the onions to sweat over a low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the lid, add the balsamic vinegar and raise heat to allow onions to brown. Stir constantly at this time until onions are a rich brown. Serves 4. Recipe adapted from Vegetables by Rosemary Stanton.

MARGARET FULTON'S TUSCAN-STYLE STUFFED BAKED ONIONS
6 large brown onions, peeled, left whole
30g unsalted butter
2 lean rashers bacon, rind removed, diced
250g lean minced beef
1 spring onion, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh chives, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 cup fresh breadcrumbs
4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 cup chicken stock
 
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees C. Place the onions in a saucepan of salted water. Cover the pan and bring the water to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer the onions for 10 minutes. Drain the onions, then carefully peel them, cutting off the tops and bottoms. Now, scoop out the centre from the inside of the onions, leaving their thick shells. 

Dice the onion flesh from the hearts finely. Melt the butter in a heavy frying pan and sauté the diced onion flesh until it has softened. Add the bacon to the pan and cook for 2 minutes. Then add the beef mince, together with the chopped spring onion, chives, parsley, breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper. 

Stir the mixture to combine. Spoon the stuffing into the onion shells. Place the stuffed onions in a greased shallow baking dish and drizzle with the olive oil. Pour the stock over and around the onions. Bake the onions for 30-40 minutes, or until they are tender and golden brown. Serves 6.  
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Tell me dear readers, are onions a favourite ingredient in your kitchen? And did you know that the Egyptians used them for mummification?
27 Comments
Janelle Mawson Sydney
27/5/2016 02:43:17 am

Yes I like onions too. I haven't had them stuffed before. Great recipes.

Reply
Lizzy
27/5/2016 10:13:41 pm

Janelle, thank you.

Reply
Amanda link
27/5/2016 07:21:42 pm

We'd be lost without onions, wouldn't we - they are the base of flavour in most savoury dishes.

Reply
Lizzy
27/5/2016 10:14:03 pm

So true, Amanda, certainly for this good Hungarian girl.

Reply
Jodie link
27/5/2016 10:06:54 pm

I simply love onions and yes, they are definitely a favourite ingredient in my kitchen! - thanks for sharing some delicious recipes. x

Reply
Lizzy
31/5/2016 12:30:38 am

My pleasure, Jodie, thanks for stopping by x

Reply
Simone Mason
27/5/2016 10:13:24 pm

Stuffed onions? How tasty.

Reply
Lizzy
31/5/2016 12:30:50 am

Very, Simone x

Reply
Eha
27/5/2016 11:20:06 pm

Could not live without onions and all their stellar friends like leeks, shallots, spring onions etc . . . am putting glorious garlic in the mix also!! Personally use but little of the white ones, brown are friends in cooking and the red don't just get thrust into salads put sometimes, if extra sweet, eaten almost;like an apple . . . :) !!

Reply
Lizzy
31/5/2016 12:31:03 am

Oh Eha, so true. x

Reply
Tandy I Lavender and Lime link
28/5/2016 12:57:13 am

Onions are an essential ingredient in our house for sure. They are amazing germ collectors and if you have a head cold you can place one behind your neck overnight and you should wake up feeling better. I've tried it once but the smell got to me 😀

Reply
Lizzy
31/5/2016 12:31:26 am

I tried that when I had pneumonia, Tandy. It did not work.

Reply
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella link
28/5/2016 08:27:13 am

I love eating onions-we go through bags of them because they add so much flavour. I now stick to sweet onions though mostly and green ones because the other ones make me cry a bit too much.

Reply
Lizzy
31/5/2016 12:31:40 am

I like the sweet ones too x

Reply
John / Kitchen Riffs link
28/5/2016 11:21:06 am

Who doesn't like onion? Probably someone, but I have yet to meet that person. I put them in almost everything! Haven't had a stuffed one in forever, though -- thanks for the reminder. Fun post. :-)

Reply
Lizzy
31/5/2016 12:31:53 am

John, thanks so much.

Reply
bushboy link
29/5/2016 02:16:47 am

I have a fab recipe of baked eschalots with raisins, balsamic and goats feta.
I enjoy cooking onions but never have cooked stufed onions before.

Reply
Lizzy
31/5/2016 12:32:05 am

That sounds wonderful! x

Reply
Diane
29/5/2016 07:06:01 am

Onions are a staple ingredient in just about every savoury dish I make. Must admit though that I have never tried to stuff them. Unfortunately I do know some people who pick through food to eliminate the small diced onions therein. They are certainly very fussy eaters.

Reply
Lizzy
31/5/2016 12:32:24 am

That's so true, Diane. Thank you for stopping by x

Reply
David link
29/5/2016 10:11:21 am

Liz - I did not know about their use in mummification but somehow think Markipedia might! I will ask when he wakes up. :) I love the stuffed onion recipe - another "must try" recipe from you! While I love onions, I think my favorite ingredient is a cousin - the shallot!

Reply
Lizzy
31/5/2016 12:32:42 am

LOL re Markipedia x

Reply
e / dig in hobart link
30/5/2016 06:36:38 pm

I love onions, and sometimes the best part of cooking a meal is frying the onions off - that smell! yum.

Reply
Lizzy
31/5/2016 12:32:50 am

Oh, so true E.

Reply
Fiona Ryan
31/5/2016 04:08:59 am

Yes indeed, I love an onion. Tonight I am making our first winter casserole and have added two onions to the base. Yum, yum. Interesting about asparagus. No noxious odor on eating but one soon after....

Reply
Beck @ Golden Pudding link
31/5/2016 06:35:47 am

I love onions too Liz, but they are also the source of my biggest recipe gripe, which is people telling you to brown or caramelise onions in less than ten minutes... So thank you for giving us a much more realistic 30+ minutes!

Reply
Karen (Back Road Journal) link
1/6/2016 06:55:03 am

I have a basket of onions in my kitchen which is never empty. The stuffed onions sound great.

Reply

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