# When a recipe calls for an onion **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [February 5, 2021, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266 "2021-02-05T14:02:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/21 "2021-02-05T16:00:47Z")
Red cabbage is purple, too. đŸ€·đŸœâ€â™€ïž I always use yellow onions. I pretty much only buy yellow onions. I also don’t like raw onions, and pretty much only use them for cooking. (although family members sometime eat them raw.) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/22 "2021-02-05T16:08:15Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Red cabbage is purple, too. Perhaps inconsistently, the Hungarian language calls that _vöröskĂĄposzta_, or “red cabbage” while, as you point out, it is purple, and almost the exact same type of purple as red onions. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/23 "2021-02-05T16:35:39Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > I make a fair amount of stuff in my Instant Pot and I always keep a couple of bags of these in the freezer. Likewise these: > [https://pictsweetfarms.com/product/3-pepper-onion-blend/clear-bag/clear-bag/95891/](https://pictsweetfarms.com/product/3-pepper-onion-blend/clear-bag/clear-bag/95891/) > Ingredients: Onions, Green Peppers, Red Peppers, Yellow Peppers. Kroger sells their house brand
pretty good, easy start for a lot of recipes, cheaper than brand name. White onion is pretty neutral in flavor compared to yellow or red. That whole allium family is good stuff. Shallots are my favorites, then leeks. Garlic, of course
where would be without it? To answer the OP for cooking—yellow. Raw—red or green. > A Turkish legend says that when Satan left the Garden of Eden after the Fall, onions grew from the spot where he set his right foot and garlic from where he set his left foot. > **[Eating Satan's footprints](https://www.salon.com/1999/10/29/onions/)** > > What can the onion and garlic diet do for you? > Ask, rather, what you can do for Macedonia. [The French have some pink ones](https://www.melissas.com/Roscoff-Pink-Onions-p/1507.htm) ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/24 "2021-02-05T16:40:24Z")
> [@FriendlyCurmudgeon](#): > > All types of onions goes into FOS. Try it with leeks sometime. Wonderful and a bit more texture. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/25 "2021-02-05T16:44:37Z")
Yellow onions as the best all-rounder for cooking. Red onions for eating raw (salads, salsas and the like). I only use white onions if the recipe demands it. They’re not as universally available where I live. Shallots for certain dishes, such as moules mariniere or banana shallots for thai green curry. Spring onions for a variety of things, generally as a last minute garnish. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/26 "2021-02-05T17:01:05Z")
I mostly use yellow onions for anything cooked and red for anything where they’re supposed to be eaten without cooking (gazpacho or ceviche mostly, I don’t tend to use a lot of raw onions otherwise). But I’ll cook with red ones if they’re all I have, or if I’m using half an onion in a raw dish and need to do something with the other half. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/27 "2021-02-05T17:16:41Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > Spring onions for a variety of things Is that what I call scallions? We use a lot of scallions, and I love shallots, but I don’t classify them as “onions” even though they are obviously quite similar. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/28 "2021-02-05T17:22:47Z")
My default is purple onions. They are always on hand at least. If I need a yellow onion for a recipe I’ll buy them, but I always have a couple of purple onions in the crisper. I too have discovered the ease of frozen chopped onions for certain types of dishes. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/29 "2021-02-05T17:30:58Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > which onions are for what [url] > [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > See, it says white onions have the ‘sharpest zing’. I guess that is why I default to them. > > Maybe I’ll try using yellow onions for a while and see if I notice any difference. I disagree with that chart. I don’t want sweet onions for frying, I want pungents. They’ll turn sweet when they’re cooked, and they have more flavor. – Pungents actually generally have more sugars than sweet onions; it’s just that the sweetness is masked in pungents by the sulfur compounds, which are changed during cooking. Onion flavor is affected by specific variety (there are lots of different varieties each of yellow, white, and red onions) and also by the soil they’re grown in. My soils don’t grow sweet onions – even varieties supposedly sweet come out at least moderately pungent, and the pungents quite so. Luckily, that’s the way I, and most of my customers, like them – I refer sweet onion customers to somebody else at the market. To my taste, sweet onions are bland, not much flavor at all. The red onions I’ve grown have a more complex and interesting flavor than the yellows I’ve grown, but some red onions more so than others; and also some yellows more than others. The only whites I’ve grown are pearl onions, which come out moderately pungent, and which I like with the greens included, usually raw on sandwiches or salad. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/30 "2021-02-05T17:31:27Z")
Cooking? It’s almost always yellow onions, sweet onions on the very rare occasions they’re available and yellows aren’t. About the only other thing I would consider substituting is shallots and then only for certain dishes. I like red onions, but I pretty much only like them raw and since I like them used sparingly I only rarely buy them. It’s more trouble than its worth to buy one just to use a little bit in a salad or sandwich. For the most part I run across them in restaurants/take-out. I don’t think I have ever used a white onion for anything, but then I don’t make my own pico de gallo. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/31 "2021-02-05T18:26:26Z")
Yellow onion is my default for cooking where a diced onion is needed. I grow my own Walla Walla Sweets and love to use them fresh, but they only stay fresh for a few weeks before they want to start sprouting again. I have grown red onions too and they suffer from the same problem, they do not keep well. And the reds are for using when they are fresh in dishes where an uncooked onion is needed. I have found that I can peel and quarter the sweets before they go bad and freeze them. Then I use them in anything savory that I might cook and partially caramelize them. Stews, soups, many other things. I usually run out of frozen sweets right about this time of year. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/32 "2021-02-05T18:29:55Z")
> [@Dallas\_Jones](#): > > I have grown red onions too and they suffer from the same problem, they do not keep well. I don’t know where you are, but if you’re in 38Âș to 50Âș latitude, try Rossa di Milano. Pungent, tastes great, stores quite well. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/33 "2021-02-05T18:32:28Z")
Are Spanish onions their own variety or is that just another name for yellow onions? ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/34 "2021-02-05T18:33:25Z")
Thank you. I think I will try them this year. I am near the mouth of the Columbia River in Oregon. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/35 "2021-02-05T19:27:04Z")
Yellow for most cooking, white on Chicago Dogs, red on patty melts and burgers. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/36 "2021-02-05T19:35:07Z")
Yellow for most cooking, white if somehow yellows aren’t to hand, and red for leaving at the store or picking out of restaurant food. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/37 "2021-02-05T21:12:46Z")
Usually yellow, just because they’re usually the cheapest. The only onions I won’t buy are the “sweet” ones, because what’s the point of an onion that doesn’t taste like onion? If I want something I can eat like an apple, I’ll get an apple. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/38 "2021-02-05T21:26:43Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > Are Spanish onions their own variety or is that just another name for yellow onions? They’re what you would normally see labeled ‘yellow onion’ at American grocers. However, I think Spanish is actually a variety of yellow onion. > [@D\_Anconia](#): > > 
 white on Chicago Dogs 
 I love Chicago dogs and raw white onion but sometimes I want Spanish instead which I perceive to be a little sharper. Same with a bratwurst with mustard and giardienera. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/39 "2021-02-05T21:30:05Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > The only onions I won’t buy are the “sweet” ones, because what’s the point of an onion that doesn’t taste like onion? If I want something I can eat like an apple, I’ll get an apple. “Sweet” onions aren’t really sweet, and certainly not like an apple; they’re just not as astringent as a regular onion. If it calls for sautĂ©ed onions, then I use either sweet onions or yellow. If it’s going to be raw, then sweet onions work better, as they’re not so bitter. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2021, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266/40 "2021-02-05T22:07:26Z")
Of course sweet onions are actually sweet. The reason I put in the scare quotes is that all onions are sweet. But the point is, the flavor that I want from an onion is precisely the one that Vidalia, Walla Walla, etc, are without. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-recipe-calls-for-an-onion/932266.md?page=3)