BLUF: A deep dive into the often overlooked world of spring onions reveals their multifarious usage in culinary exploits, the origin of their varied regional names, and their connection to hand-intensive harvest techniques, offering readers insights on how to maximize the entire onion and giving top tips on proper storage and regrowth processes.
OSINT:
If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by the large bunch of spring onions (or shallots as they’re sometimes called) that you’ve purchased, remnant of a single recipe’s demand, fret not, there’s much to be appreciated about this pungent produce. Their abundant size is a product of two primary factors- the ideal diameter of a matured spring onion, and the size of an adult’s hand, which determines their harvest yield.
Spring onions illustrate a fascinating story of growth. A thin, youthful spring onion offers a fragrant and sweet flavor, stripped of any spiciness. Its bulky older cousin, however, trades in its sweet, aromatic charm for a spicy zing. According to Thanh Truong, popularly known as the Fruit Nerd online, spring onions hit their flavor prime time at the 8mm diameter mark- the perfect equilibrium of sweetness, aroma, and spice.
It’s not only the taste but also the harvesting technique that shapes the produce we see on our supermarket shelves. Spring onions are harvested manually, and the usual grocery bunch contains the exact quantity that fits in a hand. This hand-pulled supermarket offering is carefully grown, ensuring optimal room for each onion to grow till it hits the ideal 8mm mark.
The regional names for these onions might be confusing. True spring onions (Allium fistulosum) are rather controversial. In New South Wales, these are marketed as “shallots,” while Victorians and Tasmanians know them by their real name, as confirmed by Onions Australia. The term ‘shallots’ typically refers to Allium cepa, aggreg