Growing onion microgreens is a new way to enjoy this savory and onion flavor! What is even better is that onion microgreens will not make you cry – even if you chop them!
What are Onion Microgreens?
If you don’t have an outdoor space, nor a green thumb, you can still grow onions in your home! Onion microgreens are fast-growing and result in a grass-like green filled with nutrition and the same strong onion flavor as in the full-grown vegetable. Within two weeks, you will have a crop with straight green stems and tops ready to be enjoyed.
| Growing period | 12-16+ days |
| Flavor | Savory and onion flavor |
| Growing difficulty | Easy |
| Buy seeds | Onion seeds from True Leaf Market |
Description
Onion is a widely used vegetable around the world, and it’s an important part of many different cuisines. However, its origins seem unclear. When searching for the history of onions, there are divided opinions, though it seems agreed that this humble vegetable has been used for ages, as early as 5000 years ago. It may be one of the earliest cultivated crops due to its easiness and that it could be grown in a variety of soils and climate.
Onion belongs to the Allium family that also includes garlic, shallots, chives, and leeks. Onions come in different forms, colors, and flavors. The most common types are red, yellow, and white onions.
The vegetable is very versatile and can be prepared in a variety of ways, such as being grilled, fried, baked, boiled, braised, roasted, sautéed, or even eaten raw.
Microgreens seeds will grow into a grass-like green that still has the onion flavor. The stems are soft and slightly crunchy in texture. The benefit of using onions as microgreens is that you can use them in a variety of dishes, and they will not make you cry as they don’t produce the chemical irritant known as syn-propanethial-S-oxide.
General Nutrition & Benefits
Onion microgreens are not only giving great taste, but they hold plenty of nutrients too!
They are rich in vitamins A, B, C, and E, calcium, iron, zinc, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, and amino acids.
RELATED: The Most Nutritious Microgreens to Grow and Eat
How to Grow Onion Microgreens
Onion microgreens are easy to grow. You will see that they grow fairly fast, and they will turn into long, slender green stems similar to miniature chives.
As onion microgreens greens are thin, you can grow a lot of them in a tray. If you are growing for home use only, you may want to go for a smaller one than a 10/20 (of course, this depends on how much you want to consume in a short period).
| Growing timeline (estimated) | |
|---|---|
| Presoak | No |
| Preferred medium | Soil or coconut coir |
| Avg. seed weight (10/20 tray) | 25 gram |
| Germination period (blackout) | Day 1-5 |
| Growth time (sunlight) | Day 6-11 |
| Harvest | Day 12-16+ |
Onion microgreens grow well in soil or coconut coir. You can benefit from adding a thin layer of your medium on top of the seeds. It will support the germination.
There is no need to presoak these seeds.
You can harvest your onion microgreens when they have reached a length of around 4-inches. We suggest that around day 10, taste the greens, and if you like the flavor, then you can decide if you want to harvest or wait another few days to get some extra length. If they grow too long they can easily fall over.
Onion greens will keep the seed husks as they grow taller. These are edible, but you can also rinse them to get them removed.
Culinary Guiding
Onion microgreens are excellent to use in burgers, sandwiches, and even salads! They come with a strong flavor. We love to sprinkle the microgreens on soups, add as a side to a pasta dish, or on top of eggs. Chop them up or use them as a beautiful garnish!
