Harvesting green onions for the winter: methods. How to properly dry, freeze, salt and pickle green onions for the winter?

Information on ways to prepare green onions for the winter.

In terms of the content of vitamins, phytoncides and minerals, green onions occupy a leading position among root vegetables. Many people have heard about the benefits of green onions. It’s not for nothing that the best aesthetic decoration for dishes are the feathers of green onions, which also add richness to the taste

Green onions appear on our daily menu in the spring and do not leave our tables throughout the summer. But what about in winter?

Onion feathers can be prepared for the winter in different ways.

We recommend simply freezing onion greens and enriching your favorite dishes with the breath of summer, even when there is snow and blizzard outside. This article is dedicated to lovers of green onions.

Is it possible to freeze green onions for the winter and how to do it correctly?

If you want green onions on your table all year round, then you have two options:

set up an onion greenhouse in a city apartment
choose a method of preparing onions for the winter that is acceptable to you

For freezing, you need to choose juicy fresh greens.
The first method will allow you to provide the whole family with fresh onion greens, and the second - freshly frozen portioned bags of greens.

In the second case, greens can only be added during cooking (for soup, stew, roast).

Did you choose the second method? Let's start freezing .

The process of preparing onion greens for freezing includes several stages:

washing the onion greens and removing feathers that have lost their bright green color or have yellow tips (it is preferable to cut the onion before it shoots arrows)
root pruning
placing onions on paper towels to drain
chopping onion feathers (if you prefer pre-chopped frozen product) and white onion roots (these can be frozen in separate containers)
if desired, blanching the greens (pour boiled water over the onion and boil for 2-3 minutes, after which the water must be drained, leave the onion to cool for a while)
compact packaging of greens in small bags or plastic containers (to use up the defrosted bag in one meal preparation)
squeezing the air out of the bags as much as possible, signing them and placing them in the freezer

Washed onions are chopped

Packaged in bags or containers

Bags of onions are stored in the freezer.
How long do frozen onions last? Depending on what temperature was used during freezing, greens can be stored from three months (if the temperature did not exceed 8 degrees) and up to six (if freezing took place at a lower temperature).

Freezing will not take much time, and you will preserve the vitamins and microelements necessary for your body.

Preparing the feather for drying

Onion greens should be cut in the late morning or early evening during the period of greatest “blooming”, when the feather is not too young, but not overgrown - juicy, elastic, bright green. For harvesting, they usually use onions, specially planted “on the feather”, or a trumpet, without cutting, but by pulling out the entire shoot. Leaves of perennial species, such as mucus, are collected selectively.

The white part, including leeks, also dries well, but takes longer, so it is folded and dried separately from the green mass.

When harvesting, you need to take into account that the yield of a dried feather will be equal to approximately 1/5 of the weight of a raw one. Dry, wrinkled, damaged leaves with signs of disease are discarded. If necessary, rinse the greens under running water and dry on cloth (paper) towels. For slicing, use a sharp knife, preferably a ceramic one, to prevent oxidation and excessive release of juice. The size of the pieces is not of fundamental importance, although it is faster and more convenient to work with larger ones. Some cooks prefer to dry whole feathers.

Is it possible to dry green onions for the winter and how to do it correctly

Drying onions is a great opportunity to prepare vitamin-rich greens for future use if you managed to grow a large harvest of onions at your dacha in the summer. Don’t throw away a useful product that can be used in full all year round!

How to dry onion greens? There are several ways to dry greens:

natural air drying
in the oven
in a convection oven

Dried onions retain more beneficial microelements than frozen products. In addition, during the preparation of various dishes, dried onions better reveal their taste, preserving their inherent pungency and piquant “acridity”.

Dry onion mixture is included in freeze-dried soups, seasonings, and is one of the ingredients for gravy.

Dried onions retain all the beneficial properties of fresh ones.

Advantages of dried onions over frozen:

There are no germs in dried onion feathers. By adding spicy hot seasoning to soup or gravy, you provide reliable protection for your household from pathogenic bacteria during the cold season
Onion greens increase saliva production. But this feature is so important for better digestion of food and metabolism.
Vitamin C is completely preserved in dried onions (it was not for nothing that ancient sailors stocked up on dried green onions before a long journey, which saved them from scurvy)

The first way to dry vitamin green onions is in air

If you have time, and at your dacha there is a place in the shade and even with a draft, then the outdoor drying method is ideal for you. Have you decided to dry it not at the dacha, but in a city apartment? Then lay out the onions to dry on the loggia

Slicing onions for further drying

Drying process

Rinse the onion feathers under running water. Cut off yellowed tips, remove wilted greens and rough parts of feathers
Grind the prepared onion feathers into 2-5 cm pieces
Place a layer of gauze on a large sieve or wooden board and place the greens evenly and in a thin layer. Cover the top with white paper
Periodically shake the surface on which the greens are drying and mix its contents. Dry greens for 5-7 days
Ready-made dried greens are brittle. It is easy to crumble in your hands. Place dried herbs in a jar on a regular cabinet shelf and store at room temperature

Chopped greens are placed on a layer of gauze and covered with paper.

Dry brittle onion greens
The second way to dry onion feathers is in a convection oven

According to housewives who have been using the air fryer for cooking dishes for a long time, drying onion feathers in it is also convenient.

Place the prepared and chopped onion feathers on the top grill of the device
Set the temperature to 70° and within half an hour the process of harvesting greens will be completed

Air fryer drying
The third method is drying onion feathers in the oven

Everything is very simple here! Lay out the prepared onions and set the required temperature (it should be 40-50°). Drying in the oven will take 2-3 hours

Preparatory stage

First of all, the onion feather must be properly prepared for further storage. The process is carried out in several stages:

choose for harvesting only fresh feathers of a bright green color without any damage;
do not use onions with limp or dried out tips for storage;
Wash your greens under running water, even if they look clean. Water will wash away unnoticeable remains of soil and dust;
dry the plant by blotting it with a towel. This way you can quickly remove excess moisture;
Grind the green leaves for ease of use.

At the preparatory stage, it is necessary to chop the onion, regardless of the further harvesting method.

What size the chopped onion should be depends on the choice of the housewife. If you need to prepare greens for liquid dishes (soups, borscht), it is better to cut them into medium rings. For preparing sauces, finer cuts would be appropriate.

The size of cutting greens depends on the preferences of the housewife

Pickled onions for the winter, how to pickle?

For pickling, you should select fresh and juicy onion feathers. Yellow feathers are not suitable for pickling
Trim the ends
Before pickling hot onions, they must be doused with boiling water to remove excessive bitterness. You can also place the onion in a saucepan and bring it to a boil.

Pickled onions
Recipe for pickled onions - classic :

Ingredients:

1 kg of green onions 200 g of dill salt and vinegar to taste pepper

Cooking method:

Sort the onion greens and rinse. Chop the onion, dried on a paper towel. Prepare a brine from 120 g of salt and a liter of water. Pour brine over the chopped onions and leave for 2 days. Drain the brine
Prepare the dill: blanch 200 g of dill in boiling water for several minutes. Mix onion with dill and prepare marinade. To do this, take 80 ml of 6% vinegar, two grams of dill seeds, 4-5 peppercorns, sugar and salt
Wash the jars thoroughly and place the onion and dill in them. Pour the hot marinade over the onion and sterilize for 10 minutes. Then everything is as usual: roll up the lids and under the blanket!

You can also prepare an unusual pickled onion with wild garlic , which tastes like garlic, but is not so spicy.

Recipe for pickled onions with wild garlic

Onion feathers and wild garlic should be finely chopped and poured with pre-prepared marinade (sweet and sour or prepared to taste)
After boiling the greens a little, you need to put them in jars and place them in the refrigerator for storage.

Pickled onions are an excellent addition to meat or stewed meat and vegetable dishes. A significant disadvantage of pickled onions is that they cannot be stored for a long time (only two weeks).

Helpful information

The following tips will help maintain the freshness of the product:

The less time passes from the moment the onions are picked from the garden until they are sent to the refrigerator, the better. This will allow you to retain maximum vitamins in it.
Feathers should not be crushed or broken. It is better to remove all damaged parts immediately.
Stems with roots that were not cut, but torn out of the ground, are stored longer.
You can't keep the bow open. In the fresh air, it quickly gives off moisture and deteriorates.
The small bulbs at the ends of the feathers do not need to be trimmed. When stored in the refrigerator, they are simply wrapped in a damp cloth and secured with thread.

You should not eat spoiled food. The main signs indicating that onions need to be thrown away are the appearance of an unpleasant odor and the formation of mold.

A lot of useful information about storing onions can be found here.

How to pickle green onions for the winter?

Pickled onions will enrich the taste of any dish, be it a salad, stewed vegetables as a side dish or soup.

Ingredients for pickling green onions:

1 kg green onions 200 g salt

Cooking method:

After preparation (washing the onion greens, removing the ends and drying on a paper towel), chop the greens and toss with salt
Place tightly in jars and compact until the juice releases. Pour in vegetable oil and cover with lids. A cold place is suitable for storing pickled onions.

Pickling onions for the winter

Chemical composition and calorie content

Per 100 g of dried green onions there are 218.5 kcal. When dried, onions retain their valuable properties and have a richer chemical composition than frozen ones. In addition, dried herbs include phytoncides, essential oils, a number of B vitamins, phylloquinone, biotin and retinol with ascorbic acid. The product is also rich in fiber and organic acids.

Green onions for the winter in vegetable oil

Onion feathers in vegetable oil will retain their juiciness and aroma. In winter, you only need to open the jar to season your favorite salad or other dish.

Ingredients for green onions in vegetable oil:

onion feathers (freshly cut only) salt vegetable oil table vinegar

Cooking method:

Prepare half a liter jars: wash with soda, rinse with boiled water. Sterilize the jars in the usual way for you: in the oven for 10-15 minutes or hold for 3-5 minutes on the spout of a kettle with boiling water. Boil the lids in a separate bowl
Prepare onion feathers: wash and remove excess damaged or limp stems, cut off the tips, place on a dry towel
Chop the onion. Add 1/3 teaspoon of salt to each jar. The second layer after salt will be onion layer 1.5 - 2 cm thick. And again add 1/3 tsp. salt
Periodically compact the onion with a masher until the juice begins to release. So fill the jar up to the hanger
For filling you need 4 tbsp. l. vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon (9%) vinegar. Pour all ingredients into a container and place on low heat.
Keep on the stove until the contents begin to boil, and add vinegar. Stir and remove from stove. Pour oil into jars and immediately roll up the lids.

Green onion paste for the winter

Making green onion paste is not difficult. The main thing is to have time and desire. Winter is just around the corner, and it’s better to welcome it with a variety of preserves.

Ingredients for Green Onion Paste:

water 300 ml 8% vinegar - tbsp. l. 2 tbsp. l. salt, 50 g sunflower oil

Cooking method

Grind the washed onion greens (you can add other greens for a richer taste) with a blender or meat grinder until it becomes a paste. Transfer the resulting mass into jars
Pour sunflower oil on top. Shake the jar well to distribute the oil evenly. Add more oil (the layer should be about a finger thick)
Close the jar with a lid and place the paste in the refrigerator. The shelf life of this paste is several months.

How to use the paste? Add aromatic green pasta to your favorite dishes and sauces.

Shelf life

How long can the product be kept in the freezer? The rule here is: the lower the temperature in the chamber, the longer the shelf life. With modern units it can be set at a level of up to −24 ℃, in such conditions the greens retain their freshness for up to a year. More often, the temperature in the freezer compartment is −15… −18 ℃, which reduces the period to 8-9 months. As a rule, this time is quite enough, because a fresh harvest appears and the time comes for new preparations.

Preparing green onions for the winter

We take fresh, not limp onions with medium-sized arrows, rinse and remove the ends. If there is rough skin at the lower end, then cut it off too
Having immersed the greens in a colander, they are blanched in boiling salted water (250 g of salt per liter of water) over maximum heat. After 3 minutes, remove the onion arrows from the water and cool under running cold water
After the water has drained, place the onions in small jars, for example, liter jars. Add spices to taste: bay leaf, pepper mixture
Place the jars filled up to the hangers into a large saucepan of water (water temperature - 85 degrees). Pasteurize for 15-20 minutes, roll up the lids and place upside down under a warm blanket