Using less onion not noticing big differences

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legend_018

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After years of cooking, I'm starting to notice that I don't really need to use as much onion as recipes usually call for. Most recipes seem to call for 1 onion chopped up. I started realizing that its a bit overwhelming. You get a lot out of a chopped onion and onions do vary in size.

Does anyone else ever notice this? I'm not saying that I never or would never need to use a whole onion cut up, but it just more I'm noticing more frequently that I don't need to use that! much onion in things that I make.
 
I find that to be the case with many ingredients.

When I was young I was a "kitchen sink" type of cook, I tossed all sorts of things into the pot and if a little was good then more was better!

Now that I'm older I prefer to make things with fewer ingredients and smaller amounts of ingredients that play a supporting role in the recipe.
 
I've been working on making smaller size amounts of food, less leftovers with varying success. " Working on it" is the operative word.

Onions vary in size so much. And then there is the "we" factor. What a medium onion to one of us may be a large to another. It would be simpler if recipes specified use by Cup size amounts, but then, what is one to do with a little bit of left-over onion, toss it? or use it. Of course, Use it and it's a Heaping Size measure. So here we are back to the beginning.

I have seen bags of diced onions in the freezer section. I think that could be helpful when you want a specific amount, such as a handful. Now, there's an accurate measurement.:wacko:

I look for bags of onions that are smaller in size ( when possible) so I can use just some or a little or add a 2nd smaller onion if more is wanted.
 
Since onions do vary in size so much, I just eyeball how much I want based on our taste and the amounts of other ingredients in the recipe.

I also keep a produce bag from shopping each week and collect leftover pieces of cut veggies in it for later use. This way, bits and pieces don't get lost in the crisper.
 
I try to get bags of onions with varying sizes. I then choose the onion best suited to the dish I am making.
 
I love onions so I tend to use a lot...but when making potluck or cooking for others I cut down on onions... It can be overwhelming for some folks... You kind of know when you're cutting them how much you should use...


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I too like bags of various sized onions. And I also like a lot of onions in my food.
 
I figure a large onion is one cup diced and that is enough for a dish that serves 6. If I have monster onions, I go ahead and saute the extra and toss in the fridge or freezer. They will get used.
 
I use only white onions as they are milder and don't bother my stomach, even raw. They just seem to have a softer flavor, if that makes sense. I use lots of white onions in my cooking. They are the least expensive produce we buy at 4 lbs for a dollar at the local Mexican market where they also have cilantro for a quarter a bunch. Love that place!
 
Yeah, the "1 onion chopped" is really a terrible measurement. The onions that I buy tend to be on the larger side, so I usually use half in say a spaghetti sauce. I also tend to saute onions until they are quite soft before putting them in anything, one for the flavor and two because I kinda want the pieces of onion to almost go away in the final product, so I start with more raw onions than it looks like I need.
 
1 onion in my mother's kitchen and one in mine are a huge difference. I buy those humongous onions in Sam's club or even in restaurant depot, my om buy shallots. she maybe gets a third of a cup out of her 1 onion, I get 2, maybe more cups.
 
Imprecise ingredient quantities have long been a pet peeve of mine.

Any fruit or vegetable can vary so much in size that small, medium and large mean little. Volume measures would be better and weight would be best.

This peeve extends to cans too. A "small can of tomato sauce". Really? There are three sizes of tomato sauce cans on the grocer's shelf (8 Oz., 14.5 Oz., and 28 Oz.) Were you considering all three when you wrote 'small' or just the 14.5 and 28 ounce sizes? At least tell me which can to buy in ounces, grams, cups or milliliters.

Rant over.

I usually just grab an appropriately sized onion and go with that.
 
A year or two ago, I didn't buy enough onions, so I had to make do with using only half of each onion.

I didn't notice any difference either.

The other half always get used soon enough. I put it in a zip bag and put the bag on top of the rest of the onions so I woldm't forget.

I did have an unusual experience where I forgot the onion as well as the garlic in a pot of split peas. BIG difference, but really nice flavor for a change.
 
It's time to switch everything into grams. Of course it would be silly to measure onion in grams for a soup?


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I always try to buy onions all the same size ( or approximately the same size). This way I have some consistency, at least among myself. So even if it is an error when comparing it to what the author of the recipe intended, I have consistent results every time.
 
It's time to switch everything into grams. Of course it would be silly to measure onion in grams for a soup��
Oh, no Charlie: That's all we need is to change out measurements. We still can't agree how much a half on onion is!

Do you really think this is the time to change our measurements?

You're a smart man. Can't you figure our a better way???

xoxo Z
 
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Gah! No switching to metric! I didn't understand it in 5th grade, and I sure as heck won't be able to figure it out now!

I never follow recipes anyway. If the recipe is so persnickety as to require 1/2 cup of chopped onion, I just throw the rest of the onion in, or freeze the leftover onion.
 
I never did understand metric, well, I learned a little. A meter is 2.2 feet (i think) or about 40".

A kilo is 2.2 # - I think.
 
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