JANUARY, 1907 
sauces, and for any dish where color does 
not count, and for frying. 
The characteristic quality of the onion— 
its flavor and odor—is due to a pungent 
essential oil, and to a certain degree, para- 
doxical as it may seem, the table quality of 
an onion is in inverse ratio to the quantity 
of this oil. Some housewives use onions 
as little as possible, just because of the 
discomfort incidental to their preparation. 
But it is very easily overcome: peel the 
onion while it is immersed in cold water— 
hold the hands, knife and onion under the 
water. ‘True, this is a somewhat awkward 
proceeding, but it entirely does away with 
the painful watering of the eyes. This 
same oil makes onions indigestible to some 
people, but even that can be overcome by 
extracting the oil. To modify the strong 
fiavors, parboil or scald the bulb before 
cooking it. This removes the acrid oil 
without detracting from the flavor. To 
parboil, plunge the peeled onion into boil- 
ing water, and boil for five minutes. The 
green oil-laden water is then thrown away. 
As onions thus treated are softened, they 
will not fry well—all things must be free 
from water for satisfactory frying, so if you 
wish to have ‘‘browned” onions, do not 
parboil, but “scald” instead, Peel and 
put them into a bowl, pour boiling water 
over them, cover, and let stand for five 
minutes. This draws out the oil without 
softening the tissues. 
The onions of the stores are often very 
strong. Those with a green color running 
through them are always markedly acrid, 
and may require two or three waters. 
The best way of cooking so as to retain 
all the flavor and richness of the onion is 
baking. The Spanish, or any of the large 
varieties are specially good for this purpose. 
as they are mild flavored. There is ap- 
parently a given quantity of oil to a plant 
and, so, the larger the bulb, the milder 
Ita: 
Always put onions into boiling water to 
cook. Plain boiled onions served with 
white sauce can be steamed, not boiled, 
and will then retain their shape and flavor 
much better. Always use very mild ones 
for this purpose. 
Do not peel them, but put them into 
boiling water, and boil for about an hour. 
Drain off the water, wipe the onions dry, 
wrap each one separately in buttered paper, 
put in an earthenware baking dish, and 
bake in a moderately hot oven for from 
two to three hours, according to the size of 
A good model of onion for the houseKeeper. The 
most convenient size is two inches in diameter. Red 
onions generally Keep best 
THE GARDEN 
A hank of American garlic ready for storage. 
Garlic is really palatable only when grown in a hot 
climate. in cold regions it is overpungent and acrid 
Sets, the cheapest and easiest way for the ama- 
teur to raise onions. Plant five cents worth in March 
or April 
Imported wild onions from Italy, as sold in the New 
York stores. Very mild, and lacking in sweetness 
Leeks, the mildest and sweetest of all the onion 
group. No bulb is made, and they do not Keep when 
out of the earth 
the onion. When fully cooked they will 
be a rich brown in color, and full of de- 
licious, not at all pungent, juice. 
There is one great universal objection 
to the use of the onion and all his family— 
the odor that it leaves on everything with 
which it comes in contact. It is like King 
Midas and the touch of gold, and just about 
as disagreeable: 
“You may break, you may shatter the dish if you will, 
But the scent of the onion will cling round it still.” 
Yet, if after peeling the onions, the hands 
are rubbed, on either a stick of celery, a slice 
| 
Seen esas 
Shallots as used for flavoring; 
salad when young. Keeps well for a full year. 
bulb is tinged with violet underneath the skin 
MAGAZINE 
are also eaten as 
fhe 
295 
of tomato, or a little fresh parsley all sign 
and smell will disappear. 
THE MUDDLE OF VARIETIES 
Have you ever tried to unravel the tangle 
of the host of varieties in this group? I did 
and in despair have given up the effort. 
Seemingly all the different types, or so- 
called varieties run one into another, and 
vary in form to such a degree that after 
a few years what was originally introduced 
as a round onion becomes recognized as a 
flat one. This is true of the Danvers 
Yellow (yellow skin) and the Weathersfield, 
(red skin) both originally spherical. The 
original (round) Wethersfield is now known 
as Large Red Globe. There are differ- 
ences in the keeping qualities of certain 
types, however, and generally those of 
southern or warm climates are the poorest 
keepers, although the sweetest flavored. 
THE BEST FOR STORING 
For long keeping, a tough skin is essen- 
tial. This is found in such varieties as 
White Round Dutch, the Portugal (in 
either brown or white skin), and the popu- 
lar White Globe. The Danvers is of the 
same type as the Portugal. The Tripoli 
onions are not such good keepers, but are 
valued as an early ripening strain, a char- 
acter that is most marked, however, in the 
warmer sections of the country. 
For delicacy of flavor, the Tripoli, Span- 
ish, Yellow Trebons and Giant Rocca are 
recommended. The well known  Prize- 
taker, perhaps the most popular of all the 
domestic onions, is a form of the true 
Spanish. The Bermuda type is a favorite 
because it is very sweet, mild, and very 
early. It is difficult, however to get true 
seed of this type. One of the delights of 
onion varieties is that almost without excep- 
tion any given variety has within it not only 
the capacity but also the tendency to vary 
into a host of others. Moreover, as the 
soil and climate so greatly influence the 
behavior of the variety, one must experi- 
ment, and having found a type and a strain 
that suits the conditions, stick to that one 
(in any color that may please the fancy). 
“TITTLE BROTHERS” OF THE ONION 
Associated with the true onion in our 
households are these four onion-flavored 
plants; garlic, shallot, leek, and chives. 
The use of them is distinctly restricted. 
Garlic is too intensely pungent for the ma- 
jority of people, and is usually used too 
liberally. A suspicion of its flavor adds 
Young “bunch” or “spring” onions used green and 
eaten raw, as salad. Shallots are also used thus, 
One way to use the thinnings 
