Onions are favorites, any season

Root veg­eta­bles are sta­ple foods dur­ing the win­ter. Car­rots, onions, pota­toes, beets, sweet pota­toes, yams, rutabaga and cas­sava are pop­u­lar root veg­eta­bles used in our daily diet. Stews, soups and roasts are recipes that fea­ture these root vegetables.

Cooked and served alone root veg­eta­bles pro­vide vari­ety and color to a win­ter din­ner plate. Although fresh veg­eta­bles are sum­mer­time treats, win­ter veg­eta­bles pro­vide health ben­e­fits dur­ing the cold snowy months.

Onions hap­pen to be one of the most poplar root veg­eta­bles no mat­ter what the sea­son. They are an excel­lent source of Vit­a­min C. Their acces­si­bil­ity and low cost make them favorites what­ever eth­nic cui­sine is being featured.

Layer for layer the fla­vor, color and tex­ture enhance the like­abil­ity of a vari­ety of dishes. The onion just below the peel­ing is the rich­est in can­cer pre­vent­ing flavonoids. To max­i­mize the health ben­e­fits, peel off as lit­tle of the fleshy, edi­ble por­tion as pos­si­ble. Even a small amount of over­peel­ing, the removal of more than just a thin out­side layer of the onion, can result in an unwanted loss of flavonoids. For exam­ple, a red onion can lose almost 75 per­cent of its health ben­e­fits if it is stripped too much.

Mak­ing onions part of a daily meal plan can reduce the risk of a vari­ety of can­cers. Colon, throat, ovar­ian and oral can­cer can be reduced by eat­ing more onions.

Onions are best stored in a cool, dry, well ven­ti­lated place, not in plas­tic bags. Lack of air move­ment reduces stor­age life and nutri­ent quality.

To reduce cry­ing and snif­fling when cut­ting an onion, first put the onion in the refrig­er­a­tor for 30 min­utes. Do not store them in the refrig­er­a­tor. Then cut off the top and peel only the outer most layer. The root end has the high­est con­cen­tra­tion of sul­phuric com­pounds that make the eyes tear. Cut the root off last.

Onions can be stored in the refrig­er­a­tor only after they are peeled and cut. A whole peeled onion or chopped onions can remain in the refrig­er­a­tor for seven days. Keep chopped onions in a sealed con­tainer or every­thing will end up smelling and tast­ing like onions. A plas­tic con­tainer will absorb the onion odor and will be very dif­fi­cult to reuse with­out the onion fla­vor per­me­at­ing other foods. Some peo­ple like this and store other veg­eta­bles in an old onion con­tainer to enhance the fla­vor of left­over foods.

One medium onion equals about 1 cup of chopped onion. Puree­ing or finely chop­ping onions with a food proces­sor is a devi­ous way to add Vit­a­min C, fiber and fla­vor to foods. Meat loaf, stews, soups and sauces ben­e­fit from clan­des­tine onion with­out the usual onion hater notic­ing the trick.

Sautéing onions on a high heat can cause onions to become bit­ter. Always use low or medium heat to slowly cook onions in a fry­ing pan. Burnt onions are favorites of many dis­cern­ing tastes. A few brown or even black strips of onion add tex­ture and taste that is near nir­vana for the taste buds of some people.

Root veg­eta­bles are healthy addi­tions to win­ter meals. Avoid breaded and fried onion rings for they offer more calo­ries from fat than nutri­ents from the onion. Life is like an onion, you peel it layer by layer and some­times you cry. Add onions to your life for fla­vor and nutrition.

Bob­bie Ran­dall is a cer­ti­fied dia­betes edu­ca­tor, reg­is­tered, licensed dietit­ian. She super­vises a dia­betes self-management train­ing pro­gram at Aultman-Orrville Hos­pi­tal, Orrville. Con­tact her at brandall@aultmanorrville.org or 330–684-4776.

Posted by Bobbie Randall on Jan 26 2012. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS Feed. Comments can be made below.