Wild onion, also known as onion grass, is a plant that grows across North America. Although some only regard it as a pesky weed, you can eat wild onion by following these simple steps.
What Is Wild Onion, and Can You Eat It?
Wild onion (allium canadense), also known as onion grass, is a perennial vegetable that first buds in the fall. It grows through the winter and spring when greenery is sparse before its leaves disappear in the summer, lying dormant until it grows again in the colder months. Although it is often regarded as a backyard nuisance, you can actually eat wild onions. It is a close relative of domestic varieties which you can find in the supermarket, and it has a similar, distinctive flavor.
Picking wild onion can therefore be a great way to garnish your home-cooked meals. Not only can you eat wild onions (they are tasty and free), but you are also making an environmentally conscious choice by foraging for local foods. In this article, you will learn how to identify and harvest wild onions, and you will also get some ideas for how you might incorporate the vegetable into your cooking.
How Do You Identify Wild Onion?
When you are looking for wild onions outside, make sure that you can eat them before taking them home. Wild onion is characterized by its thin, hollow, and tube-like leaves, as well as a bulbous structure at the root. It closely resembles spring onions, with green leaves at the top blending into a white stem. Wild onion is also commonly mistaken for similar, related species such as wild garlic (allium vineale), which has wider, non-hollow leaves, and wild chives (allium schoenoprasum), which have purple flowers instead of white, as wild onion does. Not only can you eat the leaves and stems of both species, you can use wild chives’ colorful flowers for cooking as well.
While you can eat both these relatives of the wild onion, unfortunately, there are also some dangerous lookalikes that you will need to watch out for. When you spot a plant that you think may be wild onion, make sure to check for:
- Root structure: Is there a bulbous structure when you pull out the root? If not, it probably isn’t wild onion, and you won’t be able to eat it.
- Scent: Do the leaves have a strong, onion- or garlic-like scent? Does the bulb at the root also have a similar, aromatic scent? If your answer is no to these two questions, it isn’t wild onion, and you won’t be able to eat it.
- Flower color and shape: If you are harvesting in spring or early summer, when wild onions bloom, the flower can be very helpful for identification. The wild onion grows a white, six-petaled flower with yellow pollen. In contrast, a common, poisonous lookalike such as the lily of the valley, for example, grows white, bell-shaped flowers. Similarly, crow poison and death camas, two other plants that resemble onion grass, grow their flowers in tall columns, whereas onion flowers will grow in small clusters.
At the end of the day, if you are doubtful about whether the plant you have at hand is really edible, don’t eat it. As much fun as foraging can be, it’s good to remind yourself of the dangers that can come with picking wild plants and veer on the safe side.
How Do You Harvest Wild Onion?
If you want to eat wild onions, you should know when to go looking for them. Wild onions are usually in season from late winter into springtime, depending on which region you live in. For example, in warmer climates such as California, you may be able to find wild onions in January, whereas in cold, mountainous regions, they may not appear until late May or June. Familiarity with your local wildlife and seasonal patterns will help you determine when the best time to set out is.
Once you have found the right season for your region and have found a population of wild onions, there are two basic ways of harvesting.
- You can either choose to cut just the leaves and leave the stem, OR
- You can dig out the root and take the entire plant.
The first option, however, has a number of benefits:
- Firstly, wild onion bulbs, unlike their domestic counterparts, are extremely small. So, even if you decided to pick the entire plant, you wouldn’t get much use out of the small root area.
- Second, picking the entire plant could potentially threaten the local wild onion population. As mentioned earlier, wild onion is a perennial plant, meaning that while its leaves grow and wither seasonally, its root system can survive for years. Picking only the leaves gives the root a chance to bloom in the coming year, whereas taking the entire plant will reduce the number of wild onions that could grow again.
- Finally, picking just the leaves is going to be a lot less messy. Cutting leaves requires minimal contact with the earth, whereas harvesting the root could require digging and lots of mud. Choosing to take just the leaves instead of the entire plant has many personal and ecological benefits.
In addition to choosing which parts of the plant you want to harvest, there are other ways you can be conscientious of your impact on local wildlife.
For example, it is always better to harvest from larger patches than smaller ones. Imagine if you only pick half of the onions from a small patch, and another forager comes along and picks another half of the remaining onions — although each of you would only be taking a small amount of wild onion, your combined actions would leave only a quarter of the original wild onion population. Because of this potential damage, when you’re foraging, it’s crucial to think about how many other foragers might come across the onions you are harvesting. Always make sure to only take as much wild onion as you can eat.
Additionally, try to only take the largest leaves from each patch of wild onions — not only will these be more flavorful, but being selective about which wild onions you pick will prevent you from over-harvesting.
Now that you have all of these harvesting tips, put on your favorite pair of hiking boots, pack a tote bag or maybe even a stylish, Fair Trade woven basket, available on Amazon**, and head to your local forest.
Preparing and Eating Wild Onion
Before you eat your wild onion, your first step is going to be cleaning. Since they are foraged vegetables, your wild onions may have some tough coats of dirt or some insects living inside them. In order to get rid of these, you should:
- Soak your wild onions in water for a few hours to dislodge any grime from your plants.
- Leave them out to thoroughly air dry.
- Inspect the onions by eye to see if there are any remaining patches of dirt or other suspicious blemishes. Make sure to only use healthy-looking parts of the vegetable in your cooking!
When it comes to its actual culinary usage, wild onion, like its domestic relatives, is a versatile vegetable that you can add to many different dishes. Here are just a few ideas for how to use them:
- You can safely eat wild onions raw: Try sprinkling them on top of salads or stir-fries. However, wild onions tend to be tougher and stringier compared to domestic relatives such as spring onions, and so some people prefer to cook them before eating.
- You can eat wild onions in a soup: They can add a refreshing zest to creamy dishes, or blend nicely with other vegetables in a light, spring soup.
- You can eat wild onions sautéed with other vegetables: Sautéing is a quick and easy way to prepare a healthy dish, and wild onions can act as a great garnish for a simple meal.
- If you’re feeling adventurous, you could also try fermenting wild onions: This will preserve them for longer and produce a refreshing side dish that can accompany a heavier main course.
Whatever you decide to do with them, eating wild onions is a great way to add a unique flavor to any dish.
Read more:
- Wild Garlic: Where to Find It, When to Harvest It, and How to Use It
- Homemade Vegetable Broth Recipe: Easy, Organic and with Freshest Ingredients
- Can You Freeze Onions? Yes – Here’s How
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