A green onion, scallion or spring onion, is an onion that’s been harvested before the base thickens up and becomes a big bulb. Some people call the ones that are the same diameter from root to leaf tip spring onions, and then refer to those where the bulb has become more rounded and begins to look like a little onion, scallions. But that’s not universal.
Besides debating over the name, there’s debating over whether they taste differently. I’ve always thought any variation in flavor had more to do with the variety of onion than anything else, and I guess it could also be due to the age of the green onion. The bigger the bulb gets, the closer to a storage onion the green onion becomes.
Mike Weathers of Buffalo Lick Farm and Nursery in Greensboro and Loganville, grows green onions from seeds and sets of Yellow Granex onions. That’s the variety that’s known as “Vidalia” when it comes from that part of Georgia. Green onions are just one of the fruits and vegetables he harvests and sells through a community-supported agriculture program and at the Snellville Farmers Market on Saturday mornings and the Whistle Stop Farmers Market in Norcross on Tuesday afternoons.
“The green onion is just a regular onion harvested early,” Weathers said. He starts harvesting his green onions about the same time he’s pulling up other spring crops like carrots and radishes and harvesting lettuce. You can understand why he eats most of his green onions in salads. It probably looks like a salad when he brings everything into the kitchen.
“Although many people eat them cooked, I know people like to sprinkle green onions with a little salt and eat them straight,” Weathers said. He grew about 400 feet of green onions this year, and not one of them grew into a storage onion. “We sold all we had so they never had a chance to bulb up,” he said.
Onions are interesting to grow especially because you can harvest them at every stage from seedling to green onion to bulb. You can start with seed, or start with sets. Most sets look like miniature onions but sometimes they look like scallions. Weathers tried both this year. He started his seeds in December and January, and started his sets in mid to late February. He was harvesting his first green onions in the middle of April.
When you buy green onions, look for crisp tops, and when you get them home, you may want to give them a good soak to help refresh the leaves and to rinse away any remaining dirt from the fields. They’ll store in the refrigerator for about a week, loosely wrapped so they don’t get slimy.
You can occasionally find green onions with a red bottom. Those are just immature red onions. All of the green onion is edible. The bottom may have a slightly different flavor than the leaves, but the whole thing is delicious.
At local farmers markets
Cooking demos:
6 p.m. Thursday, June 23. Chef Seth Freedman, Ruby Root Connections. East Atlanta Village Farmer's Market, Atlanta. www.farmeav.com
9:30 a.m. Saturday, June 25. Chef Joe Truex, Watershed working with green onions. Morningside Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.morningsidemarket.com
10 a.m. Saturday, June 25. Chef Gerry Klaskala, Aria. Peachtree Road Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.peachtreeroadfarmersmarket.com
For sale
Vegetables and fruit: arugula, beans, beets, blackberries, blueberries, broccoli, cabbage, carrotscelery, chard, collards, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, fennel, garlic, herbs, kale, leeks, lettuce, mushrooms, onions, peaches, peas, peppers, potatoes, radishes, scallions, summer squash, squash blossoms, tomatoes, turnips
From local reports
Green Onion-Green Pea Soup with Grilled Cheddar-Green Onion Sandwiches
Hands on: 15 minutes
Total time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4
In this combination you’ll enjoy the flavor of both cooked and raw green onions. The soup calls for frozen peas, but if you can still find fresh English peas, they would be wonderful. Made with fresh or frozen peas, the soup is just too easy to be as good as it is. Then the addition of green onions elevates an ordinary grilled cheese sandwich into something surprisingly elegant.
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 bunch green onions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced (about 6 onions)
1 (2-pound) package frozen peas
4 cups vegetable broth, more if needed
1 1/2 cups shredded sharp white cheddar (6 ounces)
8 slices rye sandwich bread
In a large saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add scallion whites, and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Add peas and broth. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer and cook until peas are tender, about 5 minutes.
While soup is cooking, in a medium bowl, toss cheddar with scallion greens, reserving a tablespoon of sliced greens for garnish. Divide cheese mixture between four slices of bread and spread evenly. Top with remaining bread. Set aside.
When peas are tender, puree soup with immersion blender, or in the jar of a blender. If necessary, puree in batches. Adjust thickness with more broth if needed. Taste for seasoning and keep warm.
Brush both sides of sandwiches with remaining olive oil. Heat a large skillet to very hot and place two sandwiches in skillet. Cook until golden, about 3 minutes, then turn and brown the second side, about 2 minutes. Cut each sandwich in half and serve with soup.
Adapted from a recipe in Everyday Food magazine.
Per serving: 626 calories (percent of calories from fat, 39), 39 grams protein, 64 grams carbohydrates, 15 grams fiber, 29 grams fat (11 grams saturated), 44 milligrams cholesterol, 987 milligrams sodium.
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