Brown Onions

About

Onions are the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium and have been cultivated for over 7,000 years. Brown Onions (sometimes called yellow onions) have a brown skin with a white semi-translucent flesh.

Growing and harvesting

Brown Onions are direct seeded into the ground. As a result, crops are consistent and productive. Harvest Moon grows many varieties of Brown Onions, some with exclusivity. Diversity in varieties allows Harvest Moon to meet market expectations throughout the year. Onions are lifted from the ground and windrowed to cure in the field for somewhere between 14 and 21 days before being mechanically harvested.

Buying

Select bulbs that are hard and dry, with papery skins and no soft, damp patches.

Storing

Onions should be stored at room temperature, out of direct sunlight and in a well-ventilated area. Don’t keep them in plastic – they are packed in nets because they like to breathe! Don’t store them near potatoes as they will cause the potatoes to spoil more quickly.

Cooking

Remove the outer skin from the Onion. While some people have been known to eat a brown onion like an apple (we’re looking at you, Tony Abbott), most find them too pungent to eat raw. Bake them, slice, and fry them, throw them on a BBQ to eat with a sausage, put them in your favourite curry, or caramelise them with brown sugar and vinegar.

Eating

Onions Australia (the peak industry body) state that brown onions are “rich in vitamin c, anti-inflammatory, and contain antioxidants. They boost the immune system, help keep the heart healthy, and promote good stomach bacteria. Onions are high in quercetin, an antioxidant known for being a natural antihistamine. Onions also provide calcium, iron, folate and fibre.”

Try it now

Combine Red and Brown Onions together and try this unusual Savoury Roast Onion Upside-Down Cake recipe created for Australian Onions by Tom Walton.