I don’t know about you, but I have a really hard time keeping green onions fresh here in St. John’s. When I buy them they’re usually pretty sad-looking, and if I don’t use them all right away then they wilt almost immediately.
The “vegetable crisper” in my refrigerator is a dank, dark box that does nothing any good. I’ve tried keeping the onions out of the crisper, but the result is the same. I tried putting them in water inside the fridge, but then the water just froze (my fridge is ancient and can’t regulate its own temperature) and the onions died anyway.
I bought these ones and used only a few and figured I’d try leaving them out and see if anything different happened. So I put them in a cup of water and put them on a sunny windowsill. And this is the result. I lost a few strands of onion, but those that are still there are vibrant and actually growing longer — I think I have twice as much onion as I bought originally.
How do you keep your green onions fresh?
I usually wrap them in a moist paper towel and keep them in the refrigerator. Change the paper towel daily or very often.
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See, I know that this works, but I’m wayyyy too lazy to do that. I like to stick things in my fridge and then leave them there until I need them.
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We got this herb keeper for our wedding and love it. http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?BRN=1&sku=18151480& I refuse to live without cilantro but hate how fast it would go bad on me. Our last batch stayed fresh for over a month in this little thing. I highly recommend it and am sure it would work with green onions as well.
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I have one of those, too, but I don’t find it works. I think the humidity levels in Newfoundland are too high for that to work out …
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I am always throwing away green onions and parsley and am going to give this a try! How long did they last in the cup of water?
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Well I ate them after two weeks so I’m not sure but there were twice as many!
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I’m a fellow Newfoundlander and I usually just keep mine in the fridge in the little bag they come in, and don’t have too much trouble. I’ve read that you can easily GROW your own green onions too! Place the white parts (of the onions you’ve already used) in a jar in an inch or two of water on the window sill, and apparently they’ll regrow. Supposedly, you can do this for three or four growth cycles. I tried this once and it didn’t work, but I think I had too much water in the jar. The only maintenance is to change the water every couple of days.
Here’s the info: http://thekrazycouponlady.com/at-home/ill-never-pay-again-one-simple-way-to-free-green-onions/. Someone in the comments mentioned that they plant them in a pot, and that they last longer this way. There’s lots of info out there though!
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Yeah I don’t buy them with the bag so that wouldn’t work for me. I like to eat the white part the best, so it would be hard for me to “re-plant” it!
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I plant mine in soil and just cut off what I need and water it once a week with my other plants. You can eat the white part of some, just not all. 😉
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To me, the white part is the BEST part!
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I chop them and freeze them. Then I use them as needed. But, once frozen , it can’t be used a fresh garnish…needs to be cooked.
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