Onions

Onions are sort of the foundation of the harvest and the backbone of countless recipes. You need green onions early in the summer for salads, you need medium onions in mid-summer for zucchini and green bean dishes, and you need full-sized onions in late summer for salsa, marinara, and for storage.

Onions like nice loose, composted soil in raised beds. They also like lots of water. I order our onion sets in early spring from Dixondale Farms (see the link to the right) and they send very nice quality onion sets. I usually get red onions, a sweet summer onion, and yellow storage onions, but they have a good variety. They send way more than we have room to put in one place. After I plant the raised bed in the big garden, I use the leftovers in the edible garden beds. They make a good backdrop for the flowers and greens and look so pretty in the back of the edible garden beds.

The onions can be planted when you plant the first of the seeds like lettuce and spinach – usually about mid-May in Cheyenne. Follow the directions that come with the onion sets. We plant them about 2” apart in rows about 12” apart. Then when the onions are the same size as green onions, start thinning them to every other onion. Use these in salads or wherever you use green onions. By the time you’ve used every other onion, it’s time to go back and use any that are still a little crowded in mid-summer.

About mid August, the tops start falling over – this is good! If you see any onions trying to make seed stalks, cut those off – they prevent the tops from falling over all the way. We usually pull our onions about the first week in September – it helps to have some dry warm weather for a few days. Pull them and leave the tops on; cut off any of the thick seed stalks that may still be in the middle. We lay the onions on a mesh picnic table outside out of the sun for a few days so they can start drying.

After drying outside, we take them into the garage and lay them on the concrete floor for another couple of weeks. This way they can’t get rained on. When the tops are dry, you can cut them off or leave them on to braid the tops together. If you cut them off, store the onions in some old nylons. Put an onion in the nylon and let it fall to the toe; tie a knot. Drop in another onion; tie a knot. Keep going. Hang them in a cool, dry, dark place. When you use them, start at the bottom and cut off the quantity you need.

I no longer have old nylons – they are seriously uncomfortable – so I braid the onions because it looks so pretty.

Select three of your biggest onions. Lay them down with the tops towards you. Start braiding the tops. After you make two or so braids, add an onion on either side and work in the tops.

Braid a bit more and add on onion on the top in the middle. Keep adding onions and braiding till the braid is as long as you want – probably no more than 13 onions.

Hold all the tops together and wrap some twine around them. Tie in a tight square knot. Wrap the twine around again and tie another knot. Cut the twine long enough that you can tie the ends together and make a loop.

Hang in a cool, dry place. We have wooden shelves downstairs in a dark storage room, so we just drove a few nails in the tops of the shelf support. I hang the onions there and can cut off the particular onion that I want on the braid. You don’t have to start from the bottom and work your way up like you do with nylons. They will store for several months either way.

Have you ever grilled an onion? Oh my goodness – this is food for royalty. You can grill them whole (takes awhile), or cut them in half and brush with oil and grill. Or, and this is how we usually grill them:

GRILLED ONIONS

Cut the onion or onions in half. Slice each half in 1/4” thick slices. Put onions in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Season with kosher salt and pepper. Then use your imagination: add any kind of dried herbs, or cayenne pepper or powdered chipotle, or cumin, or garlic powder, or curry powder, or whatever strikes your fancy that day. Toss gently until the onions are coated with oil.  

Grill indirectly on a piece of foil for 5- 10 minutes stirring every few minutes. You can grill these with zucchini or green peppers or hot peppers also. When the onions are a lovely shade of gold, not black, take them off the grill.

Serve over steaks or grilled chicken. Or on homemade pizza. Or put them over a fresh tomato on a piece of bread or pizza crust. Or just eat them. Really, there is no wrong way to do these.

You can try: 

GREEN BEANS WITH ROASTED ONION VINAIGRETTE

2 red onions, peeled      

1 tbs. olive oil      

¼ tsp. salt        

¼ tsp. black pepper   

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1 tbs. chopped fresh dill    

3 tbs. white wine vinegar

1 tbs. mustard 

2 lbs. green beans, trimmed, steamed, and chilled (can be done day before) 

Cut onions in half vertically. Drizzle the cut side of each onion half with ¼ tsp. oil. Sprinkle halves evenly with salt and pepper. Place 1 thyme sprig on 1 onion half; top with other half. Wrap in foil. Repeat procedure with remaining onion. Bake wrapped onions at 400° for 1 hour till tender. Cool to room temperature. Discard thyme, and chop onions. Combine 1 tsp. olive oil, onion, dill, vinegar and mustard. Toss the beans with the vinaigrette. Serves 8 

RAGOUT OF ONIONS WITH TOMATO

2 chopped garlic cloves    

1 1/4 lbs. tomatoes, cut in half (about 3 large)      

½ tsp. salt, divided       

1/4 tsp. black pepper, divided     

2 lbs. onions, peeled (about 4 large)      

1 tsp. coriander      

1/4 tsp. cumin        

1 - 2" cinnamon stick  

1 c. vegetable broth    

1/4 c. dried currants

3 thyme sprigs

2 bay leaves    

1- 3" orange rind strip

2 tbs. fresh orange juice

1 tsp. brown sugar

2 tbs. chopped cilantro 

Sprinkle garlic evenly in bottom of 13x9" pan coated with cooking spray. Arrange tomato halves, cut sides down over garlic. Sprinkle with 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/8 tsp. pepper; lightly spray tomatoes with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 55 minutes till tender. Remove from oven and cool. Place tomato mixture in food processor, reserving liquid in baking dish. Process till smooth, strain into large bowl. Add reserved cooking liquid to bowl. Heat skillet coated with cooking spray, add onions and sauté for 8 minutes. Remove onions. Add coriander, cumin and cinnamon, sauté for 1 minute. Add onions, tomato mixture, 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/8 tsp. pepper, broth and next 4 ingredients. Bring to simmer, cook 30 minutes till onion are tender, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, stir in orange juice and sugar. Remove cinnamon, bay leaves, and orange rind. Sprinkle with cilantro. 6 servings.

When I think of onions, I always think of that line from the movie The Blind Side  (one of Walt’s favorites) where Tim McGraw tries to explain his wife’s seemingly inexplicable behavior by telling his adopted son that she’s like an onion – you gotta peel back the layers. I think cooking and gardening are like that – a lot of layers that all add up to something pretty wonderful for me and my family.