The onion is a bulbous plant with hollow cylindrical leaves, long and thickened at the base that makes up the bulk of the bulb. The flowers of the onion, white or pink has six sepals, six petals, six stamens and one pistil. The fruits are small capsules containing their small seeds. Certain varieties of flowers are rather few bulbs that can be buried for new plants.
Onion is originally from Asia but has been cultivated widely in temperate and subtropical regions for thousands of years. It is indispensable in the kitchen because onion contains much water and you can cook it with little or no oil. This makes it useful to saute with other vegetables. It is very tasty either pickled, fried, boiled, baked or simply raw on enchiladas or salads. And don't forget good old fajitas.
In addition to its deliciousness, onion contains significant amounts of vitamins and minerals such as sulphur, phosphorus, iron, calcium, sodium and magnesium. The sulphur in onion is the volatile essences that gives it its characteristic pungency, which makes us cry when cutting onions because these essences come in through the nose and cause tearing. Always keep a fan blowing the air away from you while cutting onions.
