Editing Onion (section)

== Uses ==

=== Culinary ===

{{See also|List of onion dishes}}

[[File:Frying onion.JPG|thumb|right|[[Sautéing]] onions]]

Three colour varieties of onions offer different possibilities for the cook: 

* [[Yellow onion|Yellow or brown onion]]s are sweet, with many cultivars bred specifically to accentuate this sweetness, such as [[Sweet onion|Vidalia]], Walla Walla, Cévennes, and Bermuda.<ref>{{cite web |last=Oulton |first=Randal |url=http://www.cooksinfo.com/bermuda-onions |title=Bermuda Onions|date=2005-09-09 |website=cooksinfo.com |access-date=2017-11-25 |archive-date=11 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210211230456/https://www.cooksinfo.com/bermuda-onions |url-status=live }}</ref> Yellow onions turn a rich, dark brown when caramelised and are used to add a sweet flavour to various dishes, such as French onion soup.<ref name="Mower 2009">{{cite web |url=http://thecookingdish.com/0330/the-difference-between-yellow-onions-white-onions-and-red-onions/ |title=The Difference between Yellow, White, and Red Onions |last=Mower |first=Chris |website=The Cooking Dish |date=30 March 2009 |access-date=2013-03-24 |archive-date=1 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501192552/http://thecookingdish.com/0330/the-difference-between-yellow-onions-white-onions-and-red-onions/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Red onion|Red or purple onion]]s, known for their sharp pungent flavour, are commonly cooked in many cuisines, and used raw and in [[grilling]].<ref name="Mower 2009"/>
* [[White onion]]s are mild in flavour; they have a golden colour when cooked and a particularly sweet flavour when sautéed.<ref name="Mower 2009"/><ref name=NOA/>

While the large, mature onion bulb is most often eaten, onions can be eaten at immature stages. Young plants may be harvested before bulbing occurs and used whole as [[Allium fistulosum#Ambiguous names|spring onions]] or [[scallion]]s. When an onion is harvested after bulbing has begun, but the onion is not yet mature, the plants are sometimes referred to as "summer" onions. Onions may be bred and grown to mature at smaller sizes, known as pearl, boiler, or pickler onions; these are not true [[pearl onion]]s which are a different species.<ref name="Thompson 1995 143">{{cite book |last=Thompson |first=Sylvia |year=1995 |title=The Kitchen Garden |publisher=Bantam Books |page=143}}</ref> Pearl and boiler onions may be cooked as a vegetable rather than as an ingredient, while pickler onions are often preserved in [[vinegar]] as a long-lasting relish.<ref>{{cite book |title=Home Preservation of Fruit and Vegetables |author1=Ministry of Agriculture |author2=Fisheries and Food |year=1968 |publisher=HMSO |page=107}}</ref> [[Pickled onion|Onions pickled in vinegar]] are eaten as a side serving with traditional [[pub]] food such as a [[ploughman's lunch]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Traditional English Pub Style Ploughman's Lunch |url=https://www.food.com/recipe/traditional-english-pub-style-ploughmans-lunch-250126 |website=Food.com |access-date=8 October 2024}}</ref>

Onions are commonly chopped and used as an ingredient in various hearty warm dishes, and may be used as a main ingredient in their own right, for example in [[French onion soup]], creamed onions, and [[onion chutney]]. They are versatile and can be baked, boiled, braised, grilled, fried, roasted, sautéed, or eaten raw in salads.<ref name="bbc">{{cite web |url=http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/knowhow/glossary/onion/ |title=Onion |website=GoodFood |publisher=[[BBC]] |access-date=2013-04-02 |archive-date=30 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130530032911/http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/knowhow/glossary/onion/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Onions are a major ingredient of some [[curry|curries]]; the Persian-style [[dopiaza]]'s name means "double onion", and it is used both in the dish's sour curry sauce and as a garnish.<ref name="Dillon 2024">{{cite web |last=Dillon |first=Sheila |author-link=Sheila Dillon |title=From balti to bhuna: the ultimate guide to curry |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3jPY8xvk41DrT93Lw4XPk1w/from-balti-to-bhuna-the-ultimate-guide-to-curry |publisher=[[BBC Radio 4]] |access-date=7 October 2024 |date=2024}}</ref> [[Onion powder]] is a seasoning made from finely ground, dehydrated onions; it is often included in seasoned salt and spice mixes.<ref name="Engineers 2015">{{cite book |last=Engineers |first=N.B.C. |title=The Complete Book on Onion & Garlic Cultivation with Processing (Production of Onion Paste, Flakes, Powder & Garlic Paste, Powder, Flakes, Oil) |year=2015 |isbn=978-81-7833-159-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WchbCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA169 |pages=169–175 |publisher=Asia Pacific Business Press}}</ref>

=== Other uses ===

[[File:Cells from a red onion epidermal peel.tif|thumb|Onion [[epidermis (botany)|epidermis]] cells are visible in [[True color (rendering)|true color]] with minimal [[magnification]].]]

Onions have particularly large [[Cell (biology)|cells]] that are easy to observe under low magnification. Forming a single layer of cells, the bulb epidermis is easy to separate for educational, experimental, and [[plant breeding|breeding]] purposes.<ref>{{Cite journal |pmid=19684107 |year=2009 |last1=Suslov |first1=D |title=Onion epidermis as a new model to study the control of growth anisotropy in higher plants |journal=Journal of Experimental Botany |volume=60 |issue=14 |pages=4175–4187 |last2=Verbelen |first2=J. P. |last3=Vissenberg |first3=K. |doi=10.1093/jxb/erp251|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |pmid=24416168 |year=2014 |last1=Xu |first1=K |title=A rapid, highly efficient and economical method of Agrobacterium-mediated in planta transient transformation in living onion epidermis |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=9 |issue=1 |page=e83556 |last2=Huang |first2=X. |last3=Wu |first3=M. |last4=Wang |first4=Y |last5=Chang |first5=Y |last6=Liu |first6=K |last7=Zhang |first7=J |last8=Zhang |first8=Y. |last9=Zhang |first9=F. |last10=Yi |first10=L |last11=Li |first11=T. |last12=Wang |first12=R. |last13=Tan |first13=G. |last14=Li |first14=C. |display-authors=5 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0083556 |pmc=3885512 |bibcode=2014PLoSO...983556X |doi-access=free}}</ref> Onions are therefore commonly used in [[science education]] to teach the use of a [[microscope]] for observing cell structure.<ref name="McCabeO'Donnell2007">{{cite book |author1=Anne McCabe |author2=Mick O'Donnell |author3=Rachel Whittaker |title=Advances in Language and Education |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UKLc_kfOJb8C&pg=PA35 |date=19 July 2007 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-4411-0458-8 |page=35 |access-date=2 August 2015 |archive-date=26 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150926023847/https://books.google.com/books?id=UKLc_kfOJb8C&pg=PA35 |url-status=live }}</ref> Onion skins can be boiled to make an orange-brown dye.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.allnaturaldyeing.com/onion-skin-dye/ |website=All Natural Dyeing |title=Onion Skin Dye (Yellow and Purple) |access-date=31 July 2020 |archive-date=6 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806051713/http://www.allnaturaldyeing.com/onion-skin-dye/ |url-status=live }}</ref>