Storing Onions

With the proper conditions, Storage Onions should last well into the late winter or early spring, if you don’t use them all before then.  A storage onion is a pungent onion…the type that makes you cry when you chop it up.  Sweet onions like Vidallias or Walla Walla are not good keepers and will last only a month or so after harvest under the best possible conditions.

Conditions for Storing Onions

Onions like a cool, dry and dark place to hang out in storage.  Root cellars tend to be too humid for onions.  Some people store onions in their attic or in a room that has the heat turned off.  According to Justin and these storage tips from Gardener’s Supply, 34 to 40 degrees is ideal.  The onions need to breath and stay dry so store them on a flat surface or in a mesh sack.  Here is an article from TheYummyLife.com that suggests alliums store best in paper bags with lots of holes.  Detailed instructions can be found on the website along with the results of several tests conducted to determine optimum storage conditions.

Inspect Often

It is a good idea to check up on your onions at least once a week.  Feel them to see if any are getting soft and use those immediately.  If you notice any disease, remove those onions so the chance of the disease spreading is minimized.

Freeze Chopped Onions for Convenience

Onions freeze really well and having a pre-chopped supply in your freezer can speed up meal preparation.  Each year I chop a gallon bag of onions and freeze another bag that is a mixture of onions and bell peppers, a combination often called for in recipes that I use.

No preboiling necessary!  Just chop the onions to the desired size – a quarter inch dice is good for most purposes.  Spread the chopped onions in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze.  Once the onions are frozen, you can put them into a zippered freezer bag and store them in the freezer.  Pre-freezing them on the baking sheet keeps the pieces separate from one another so they aren’t all stuck together.  This way, you can remove just what you need when cooking.

Golden Baked Onions

This recipe from The Splendid Table makes creamed onions seem boring!  Wouldn’t these look beautiful on your Thanksgiving table!