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By Root 781 0

it is part of the trinity of flavors that includes celery and peppers. Quintessential eastern European Jewish cooking combines chicken fat with onions, while Hungarian cooking typically includes onions, lard, and paprika. Many French dishes begin with a mire-poix—a mixture of diced onion, carrots, and celery—perhaps sautéed in butter with herbs. A similar mixture in Italy, sautéed in olive oil, is called a soffrito.

Availability

Because they store so well, onions are available year-round.

Storage

Onions will keep best if they are properly cured, and this means that they must be allowed to fully mature in the ground. When more than half the tops in a row have browned and bent over, drag a rake over the row (teeth-side up) and knock down the remaining tops. Leave the plants for another week to fully die back, then spread them on screens to cure in the sun for 3 to 7 days. Cut off the tops, leaving a 1-inch stub, and dry in the shade for another 2 to 3 weeks. Then store them in a cool, dry spot with plenty of ventilation. Moisture will cause rot. Well-cured onions will keep at room temperature for about a month. Sweet onions, such as Vidalias, do not store as well as regular onions.

How to Buy

Look for dry onions, well covered with crackling, papery skins. Avoid any that show green sprouts emerging from the stems. I choose my onions by size. I prefer smaller ones because I am unlikely to put a huge onion in a single dish for fear it will overwhelm other flavors.

Preparation

Peel onions before using unless you are making broth and want the skins to impart color. To peel small pearl onions, put the onions in a bowl and cover with boiling water. When the water has cooled, drain. The skins will slip off easily.

If you aren’t going to use a whole onion, remove slices from the stem end, but leave the root end in place; this will prevent the onion from falling apart.

Cooking Ideas

Cooking sweetens onions and tames their heat. The longer the cooking, the sweeter the onion becomes. Many recipes call for sautéing the onion until softened, about 3 minutes. At this point the flavor of the onion is fairly sharp and the texture still crisp. If you continue to sauté for 10 minutes or more, the onion will sweeten and become golden in color. If you continue to cook for about 30 minutes, the onions will brown and the sugars will caramelize. Caramelized onion is a traditional top-ping for hamburgers and steaks. Add stock to caramelized onions and you have an instant onion soup.

Onions can also be baked or roasted whole to serve as an accompaniment to roasted or grilled meats. Peel the onions, slice a little off the bottoms so they will sit flat in a pan, drizzle them with olive oil, and bake at 425°F for 1 hour.

Onion Math

1 pound = 4 medium onions = 4 cups diced

Shallots

Shallots are prized for their delicate flavor, which is less aggressive than that of either garlic or onion. They grow somewhat like garlic, with a head composed of multiple cloves, but they arrive at the market usually broken into individual cloves. The skin color can vary from pale brown to pale gray to rose, and the off-white flesh is usually tinged with green or purple. They are used both raw and cooked.

Availability

Shallots are dried and cured much like onions and are available year-round.

Storage

Store shallots as you would onions.

How to Buy

Look for plump, dry shallots with no sign of sprouting.

Preparation

Shallots are peeled before they are minced or chopped, like onions.

Cooking Ideas

Shallots are classically used to flavor vinaigrettes. They are often sautéed in butter or olive oil and used to flavor sauces.

Shallot Math

1 pound shallots = 4 cups chopped

1 medium shallot = 2 tablespoons minced

Tubers

OF ALL THE FOODS that originated in the New World, potatoes may be the most significant—or at least the most densely caloric. Both regular potatoes and sweet potatoes had their origins in South America, and both are tubers, though the similarities pretty much end