When I wrote about nose-to-tail vegetables the other day, I was most excited to share this article with you (the photos were taken over a week ago). Green onions are the epitome of this concept – although they are a singe vegetable, there are up to four unique parts which each can be used very differently in cooking and preserving. From the bottom up:
- The roots
- The bulb
- The ‘hip’ between the bulb and the greens
- The greens
Each piece has unique texture, unique visual appeal and even subtle flavor differences. On a green salad I would add dried slices of the white bulbs while the greens would be used for a fish or something lighter in appearance. The dried hips (which are stripes of white and green) are ideal toppings to pasta or a fresh sauce.
When we dehydrate green onions, we keep each part separate and store them in different jars so that we can use them for different purposes. These onions didn’t have roots but you can see how we’ve separated the parts below.
We dehydrate them between 135-140 degrees until dried throughout (it takes 6-10 hours).