🥓 Onion
Allium cepa
What it is
A round vegetable that grows under the soil and is made of many layers wrapped together.
How it looks
A round bulb with a thin papery skin of white, yellow, or purple over juicy layers.
Taste
Sharp and strong when raw, turning soft and sweet when it is cooked slowly.
Why it is healthy
Has vitamin C and healthy plant compounds that are good for your body.
How to eat it
Almost always eaten cooked in soups, stews, and sauces, or raw in small amounts on food.
How it grows
Grows from a seed or small bulb; the round part we eat swells up under the ground.
In season
Available all year because it stores well, with harvest in late summer.
History
One of the oldest vegetables, grown and eaten for thousands of years across Asia and the Middle East.
Fun fact
Onions make you cry because cutting them releases a gas that stings your eyes.
Try this
Chilling an onion before you cut it helps keep your eyes from watering.