Onions — season, tips, and recipes in New Zealand
Onions is a vegetables available in New Zealand during January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December, peaking in January, February, March. This page is a practical guide for home cooks: when to buy onions, how to pick a good one, how to store it, what it goes well with, three original recipes, and detailed nutrition information.
NZ is a major onion exporter, most grown in Waikato and Pukekohe. NZ onions are known internationally for quality.
How to pick a good one
Firm, heavy, dry papery skin. No soft spots or sprouting.
How to store it
Cool, dark, well-ventilated. Don't store near potatoes. Keep for months.
Goes well with
thyme: Thyme's slightly astringent, earthy notes complement onion's sweetness when caramelised. The combination is the basis of French onion soup.
balsamic vinegar: Acidity and sweetness both amplify caramelised onion's existing complexity. A splash of balsamic after caramelising onions makes them taste like they've been cooking twice as long.
bay leaf: Bay's subtle, slightly medicinal warmth appears to do very little in a dish and yet everything changes when you take it out. With onions it adds a background depth to stocks, soups, and braises.
beef: Beef's glutamates and onion's sweetness are complementary at a fundamental level. French onion soup, beef bourguignon, shepherd's pie -- the pairing appears in every cuisine that has both.
Recipes
French Onion Soup
Deeply savoury. Worth the slow cooking.
Ingredients: 4 large onions, 2 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp flour, 1L beef stock, splash wine, thyme, bread, gruyère
Method: Slice onions finely. Cook slowly in butter for 30 min until deeply caramelised. Add flour, stir. Add stock and wine. Simmer 20 min. Ladle into bowls, top with toast and cheese, grill until bubbling.
Caramelised Onion
On everything. Make a big batch.
Ingredients: 4 onions, 2 tbsp butter, pinch sugar, pinch salt
Method: Slice onions thinly. Cook in butter over low heat for 30-40 min, stirring occasionally, until deep golden. Add sugar and salt at the end.
Quick Pickled Red Onion
Ready in 30 minutes. Transforms anything.
Ingredients: 1 red onion, 100ml vinegar, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp salt
Method: Slice onion thinly. Dissolve sugar and salt in vinegar. Pour over onion. Leave 30 min. Keeps in fridge for 2 weeks.
Nutrition
One medium onion provides 20% of your daily vitamin C and 10% of your vitamin B6. The real value is quercetin, an antioxidant found in the outer layers (don't over-peel). Cooking reduces some vitamin C but makes quercetin more bioavailable. About 44 calories per onion. Red onions have significantly more antioxidants than white.