Saturday, August 23, 2014

Walk like an Egyptian - Egyptian Onion, that is

As a prelude to our annual Summer dinner and meeting at Veronica's, I thought I would recognize the Walking Egyptian Onions that I received from her a few years ago.  Veronica gave me one set that I planted 3 years ago and now I have a nice little stand of onions.  They aren't the most attractive plant, although I do like their "crowns".   The entire plant is edible and I have tried them on kabobs on the grill and also sauteed.  I read somewhere that the taste is a cross between an onion and a shallot, and I have to say that I agree with that.  The entire plant is edible.  The topsets can be eaten, the onions at the base can be eaten, and the stalks can be cut and eaten.  The "walk" occurs when the topsets becomes heavy and drops to the ground, planting another set of onions for future harvests.   According to Dave's Garden.com, Egyptian Onions are an heirloom plant, going back to the 1850's.  They are a little tedious to peel, but I saw a response in GardenWeb.com to blanch briefly for peeling, so I am going to try that.  Use Egyptian Walking Onions fresh or cured, raw or cooked (I just tried a raw one - they are quite spicy - garlic lovers will love them).  To cure, put in a dry place with good circulation for about 2 weeks. Btw, I saw them being sold online for $17.95 for 1 oz.  Enjoy!

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