Storing chopped onions

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

You can freeze chopped onions, or better still don't chop more than
you need. I buy onions in various sizes, so if all I want is some
small amount I choose one that's of the appropriate size so there are
no left overs. Once they're cut onions deteriorate very rapidly, I
don't want stinky onions around nor would I use them anyway... I
haven't wrapped a part of an onion in some 40 years. In warn weather
when I know I'll be using onion for salads I tend to buy bunches of
spring onions, one is just right for an individual salad.

Sheldon

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

Onions start losing flavor once they're chopped. Storing them as
you did will not prevent or reverse that fact.

-sw

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

If you are going to use them raw, maybe a vacuum sealer and storage in
the fridge, but there's no way to preserve them for an extended
period.

For cooking, I chop a 3 lb. bagfull all at once, put them in zipper
bags, flatten them out to remove the air, and freeze. You could divide
them into any amount, say four onions to a bag, then break off a chunk
at a time as needed.

You could always find a 1/2 of vertical space in the freezer to fit
them.

Don't bother to try them raw, they turn into rubber as soon as they're
frozen.

In article <[email hidden]>,

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

Freeze the chopped onions.

"Sheldon" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

You can freeze chopped onions, or better still don't chop more than
you need. I buy onions in various sizes, so if all I want is some
small amount I choose one that's of the appropriate size so there are
no left overs. Once they're cut onions deteriorate very rapidly, I
don't want stinky onions around nor would I use them anyway... I
haven't wrapped a part of an onion in some 40 years. In warn weather
when I know I'll be using onion for salads I tend to buy bunches of
spring onions, one is just right for an individual salad.

If you have say, a half of an onion that you've used, you can butter the cut
part and put it in the fridge, wrapped in plastic. Margarine works well for
this too. Seals off the stink. Of course then you have a greasy onion left
and if you're not making something that has butter in it, you'll need to
re-cut it for the next use.

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

No. Try not to do it.

Some people freeze onions. The freezing works fine. They are very
inferior to use after they thaw. Try not to do this either. -aem

aem said:

Some people freeze onions. The freezing works fine. They are very
inferior to use after they thaw. Try not to do this either. -aem

I've never felt pre-cut onions were of any convenience to me. It hardly
takes a minute to cut an onion up from scratch, as well as saving on the
cost of the plastic baggie or whatever you freeze it in.

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

I only chop onions as I'm working with a recipe. However, I have a
large family that comes home on holidays, and I usually will do all my
baking, and the chopping of onions, celery, peppers, etc. on the day
before. When I do this, I usually use plastic Ziploc bags, squeeze to
get most of the air out and refrigerate until the next day's cooking.

There are two reasons I do the onions the day before. Usually on
holidays I have enough irons in the fire without getting into a lot of
prep work. Also, I cry a lot when I chop onions (yeah, yeah, I know
about the water trick), and it makes my mascara run, and my eyes red,
just when all those holiday pictures are going to be taken. Once I
tried wearing my swimming goggles, but the imprints from the rims,
made the most unusal pictures of me, you'd ever wish to see;-)

Sometimes you just gotta sacrifice a little - stronger smelling onions
vs. prettier eyes!

Myrl Jeffcoat

Stan Horwitz <[email hidden]> dropped this news:stan.horwitz-
[email hidden]: in rec.food.cooking

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

Freeze the chopped onions.

Oh yeah. I do it all the time and I love it. I no longer fret when I over
buy onions when they are on sale. Just chop 'em up, throw 'em in a freezer
bag, date them and use 'em when needed.

Michael

--
Children today are tyrants. They contradict their parents, gobble their
food, and tyrannize their teachers.
- Socrates

to email: dog3 at charter dot net

Myrl wrote on Fri, 19 Oct 2007 05:26:47 -0000:

MJ> On Oct 18, 6:52 pm, Terry <[email hidden]> wrote:
??>> After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in
??>> a clear Tupperware bowl and a lid.
??>>
??>> After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger
??>> taste? Can this be avoided?

MJ> I only chop onions as I'm working with a recipe. However,
MJ> I have a large family that comes home on holidays, and I
MJ> usually will do all my baking, and the chopping of onions,
MJ> celery, peppers, etc. on the day before. When I do this, I
MJ> usually use plastic Ziploc bags, squeeze to get most of the
MJ> air out and refrigerate until the next day's cooking.

MJ> There are two reasons I do the onions the day before.
MJ> Usually on holidays I have enough irons in the fire without
MJ> getting into a lot of prep work. Also, I cry a lot when I
MJ> chop onions (yeah, yeah, I know about the water trick), and
MJ> it makes my mascara run, and my eyes red, just when all
MJ> those holiday pictures are going to be taken. Once I tried
MJ> wearing my swimming goggles, but the imprints from the
MJ> rims, made the most unusal pictures of me, you'd ever wish
MJ> to see;-)

I think I have seen chopped onions, or at least sliced, for sale
in the meat compartments of my supermarket so some people will
do a lot to avoid working with them :-) I find one of those
onion choppers using a grid is fast enough to avoid a lot of
irritation. I can also understand storing large quantities of
prechopped ones in sealed bags but I would not freeze them if
texture is important.

You can't always buy onions of the size you want, like say
"medium onions", so storage of unused portions can be necessary.
(I don't do it but would discarding unused portions cost all
that much?) Tight wrapping in plastic seems to work quite well.

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

E-mail, with obvious alterations:
not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

In article <[email hidden]>,

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

Here's a recipe for baked fish that calls for blanching the sliced
onions before using them in the recipe - I'll bet you could do the same
with your chopped onions. I'd blanch for a minute and chill in ice
water for two minutes, drain, and refrigerate.

Does your Tupperware take on the onion odor? Store in a glass jar
instead.

From http://www.greekoliveoils.com/recipes.html
Baked Fish (serves four)
Ingredients:
Preparation:
2lb filet halibut, scrod, or haddock
1/2 lemon
2 medium onions sliced in rings 1/4 inch thick
2 medium tomatoes sliced in rounds 1/4 inch thick
1 tsp thyme
2 tbsp. breadcrumbs
1/2 cup pitted olives for garnish
chopped parsley for garnish
1/2 cup olive oil
salt, pepper

Wash the filet several times with cold water. Remove from water. Let
drain. Squeeze 1/2 a lemon over the fish. Sprinkle with salt on both
sides. Meanwhile blanch the onion slices in parboiling water. Rinse
them with cold water. Drain the onion slices, and arrange them on the
bottom of a shallow baking dish. Place the fish on the top of the
onions. Crush the thyme and sprinkle the fish with it. Arrange the
tomato slices on top of the fish, ant top each slice with an olive.
Pour the olive oil on top of the fish and tomatoes. Add freshly ground
pepper, and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Bake at 350 degrees for about
30 min. Remove from oven. Garnish with parsley and serve.
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
Notes about our meals in Tuscany have been posted to
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com; 10-16-2007

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

I don't do that because I don't want other stuff to pick up onion
taste. I guess Tupperware would prevent that, but I've found it hard
to get the onion smell out of the containers too. I leave the
leftover onion sit out, intact with foil over the exposed part, only
chopping what I'd use right away. After a day or two or three, if I
don't use it, I toss it.

--Bryan
Lyrics and stuff up on the revamped website:
http://www.TheBonobos.com

Julie Bove said:

"Sheldon" <[email hidden]> wrote in message

news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Terry said:

After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
Tupperware bowl and a lid.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
this be avoided?

Quoted message said:

You can freeze chopped onions, or better still don't chop more than
you need. I buy onions in various sizes, so if all I want is some
small amount I choose one that's of the appropriate size so there are
no left overs. Once they're cut onions deteriorate very rapidly, I
don't want stinky onions around nor would I use them anyway... I
haven't wrapped a part of an onion in some 40 years. In warn weather
when I know I'll be using onion for salads I tend to buy bunches of
spring onions, one is just right for an individual salad.

If you have say, a half of an onion that you've used, you can butter the cut
part and put it in the fridge, wrapped in plastic. Margarine works well for
this too. Seals off the stink. Of course then you have a greasy onion left
and if you're not making something that has butter in it, you'll need to
re-cut it for the next use.

I don't think that will prevent the deterioration, it's an extra step
and they will still stink, otherwise you wouldn't be using plastic
wrap. But most importantly that is a very poor food handling
practice. comes under the do not store onions in oil doctrine....
preventing exposure to air increases the multiplying rate of botulin
many fold... as a health matter it is not a good idea to store cut raw
onion by any air excluding means. If a health inspector found a
restaurant storing cut raw onions in plastic wrap they will be cited.

Sheldon

On Oct 19, 8:37?am, "James Silverton" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I think I have seen chopped onions, or at least sliced, for sale
in the meat compartments of my supermarket so some people will
do a lot to avoid working with them :-) I find one of those
onion choppers using a grid is fast enough to avoid a lot of
irritation. I can also understand storing large quantities of
prechopped ones in sealed bags but I would not freeze them if
texture is important.

You can't always buy onions of the size you want, like say
"medium onions", so storage of unused portions can be necessary.

I've never not been able to find onions is all sizes, from grapefruit
size all the way down to smaller than a golf ball. And for times when
I need a very small amount I use spring/green onions... chopping just
the white part makes about a Tbls and the green portion won't stink,
doesn't even need wrapping... although most times I'll use that in the
recipe too, often as a garnish.

And in my previous post I forgot to mention, I keep dehy minced onion
for times when I need some very small amount or even if I've ran out,
works very well in soups/stews, in meat balls/loafs too. I also keep
dehy toasted onions, far better than using those salt laden packets of
onion soup mix. Penzeys sells dehy onions in minced and sliced, in
plain and toasted. I keep their dehy green and red bell pepper too,
excellent quality. and very handy as many times, especially during
winter, I either don't have bell pepper or what I do have has begun to
rot.

Sheldon said:

Julie Bove said:

"Sheldon" <[email hidden]> wrote in message

news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Oct 18, 9:52?pm, Terry <[email hidden]> wrote:
> After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in a clear
> Tupperware bowl and a lid.

Quoted message said:

> After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger taste? Can
> this be avoided?

Quoted message said:

You can freeze chopped onions, or better still don't chop more than
you need. I buy onions in various sizes, so if all I want is some
small amount I choose one that's of the appropriate size so there are
no left overs. Once they're cut onions deteriorate very rapidly, I
don't want stinky onions around nor would I use them anyway... I
haven't wrapped a part of an onion in some 40 years. In warn weather
when I know I'll be using onion for salads I tend to buy bunches of
spring onions, one is just right for an individual salad.

If you have say, a half of an onion that you've used, you can butter the cut
part and put it in the fridge, wrapped in plastic. Margarine works well for
this too. Seals off the stink. Of course then you have a greasy onion left
and if you're not making something that has butter in it, you'll need to
re-cut it for the next use.

I don't think that will prevent the deterioration, it's an extra step
and they will still stink, otherwise you wouldn't be using plastic
wrap. But most importantly that is a very poor food handling
practice. comes under the do not store onions in oil doctrine....
preventing exposure to air increases the multiplying rate of botulin
many fold... as a health matter it is not a good idea to store cut raw
onion by any air excluding means. If a health inspector found a
restaurant storing cut raw onions in plastic wrap they will be cited.

Sheldon

I store half cut onions in plastic wrap all the time. I like raw
onions on hot dogs and a couple of other things, and I don't really
notice the change in taste.

Chopped ones in plastic containers don't work for sure.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

"Terry" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I store half cut onions in plastic wrap all the time. I like raw
onions on hot dogs and a couple of other things, and I don't really
notice the change in taste.

Chopped ones in plastic containers don't work for sure.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I'm with you, Terry. I've never had a problem with cut onions tightly
wrapped in plastic.

Felice

Felice Friese said:

"Terry" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I store half cut onions in plastic wrap all the time. I like raw
onions on hot dogs and a couple of other things, and I don't really
notice the change in taste.

Chopped ones in plastic containers don't work for sure.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I'm with you, Terry. I've never had a problem with cut onions tightly
wrapped in plastic.

Felice

they seem to keep o.k. with this method. chopped, i wouldn't know,
probably not.

lately, if i know i'm using only part of an onion, i'll keep the skin
on the unused part.

your pal,
blake

Melba's wrote on Fri, 19 Oct 2007 07:50:28 -0500:

??>> After chopping up onions, I tried storing the left over in
??>> a clear Tupperware bowl and a lid.
??>>
??>> After a day in the fridge they seem to have a stronger
??>> taste? Can this be avoided?

MsJ> Here's a recipe for baked fish that calls for blanching
MsJ> the sliced onions before using them in the recipe - I'll
MsJ> bet you could do the same with your chopped onions. I'd
MsJ> blanch for a minute and chill in ice water for two
MsJ> minutes, drain, and refrigerate.

MsJ> Does your Tupperware take on the onion odor? Store in a
MsJ> glass jar instead.

Popular Science of November 07 has a special emphasis on
cooking. As far as chopping onions is concerned, they came up
with a new idea to me. Apparently, refrigerating the onion 30
minutes before chopping cuts down the emission of irritants. Eye
irritation is not usually a problem for me but I think the idea
might be worth trying.

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

E-mail, with obvious alterations:
not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

James Silverton said:

Popular Science of November 07 has a special emphasis on
cooking. As far as chopping onions is concerned, they came up
with a new idea to me. Apparently, refrigerating the onion 30
minutes before chopping cuts down the emission of irritants.

Cooling onions to reduce eye irritant is a very old concept but
doesn't really work very well... much better is to use a sharp knife
and sufficient ventilation.