Page 132 - The Forager’s Guide to Wild Foods

Wild Onion, Allium stellatum

(AMARYLLIDACEAE)

A. stellatum
Jeannine Tidwell

A. cernuum A. canadense

Meneerke bloem, CC BY-SA 3.0

Wild onions are a favorite of mine for their ease of ID LEAF: Wild onions have flat, slender, smooth linear
and taste. There are many species of wild onion and grass-like basal leaves that can grow up to 6-12 inches
a rule of thumb is if it looks and smells like an onion, (14-45cm) long and recurve outward from the plant.
it’s an onion. Smell is a key identifier. Below is an ID Solid leaves have parallel veins and often have died
for one common onion. Other common species are A. back by the time the plant flowers.
canadense and A. cernuum.
EDIBLE PARTS: flowers, leaves, and bulbs
WILD ONION, Cliff Onion or Prairie Onion is a bul-
KEY MEDICINAL USES: It’s used for colds, sore
bous perennial native to central and eastern North
throats, respiratory ailments, and infections.
America. It is found growing in rocky, limestone or
HOW TO HARVEST AND EAT: Bulbs, leaves, and flow-
calcareous soils on slopes, shores, and ridges, form-
ers are edible raw or cooked. Bulbs are best harvested
ing compact clumps of 1 ft. (0.3 m) tall grass-like fo-
after the flowers have completed making seeds in the
liage from underground bulbs. Plants emerge in the
fall. Harvest the largest bulbs and replant any bulb-
spring and pink onion flowers bloom once foliage dies
lets. Leaves have excellent flavor and can be used like
back. All parts of this plant have an oniony smell when
green onions. Pinch flowers at their base and use as a
crushed or bruised.
seasoning/garnish.
FLOWER: Small, pink or whitish-pink, six-petaled
WILD ONION TART: Collect 10-12 leaves. Rinse and
flowers bloom in spherical clusters of flowers at the
chop into ¼ inch (0.6cm) pieces. Use a frozen 9-inch
apex of 1-2 ft. (0.3-0.6m) long, smooth, straight stems
(23cm) pastry shell. For the filling, mix 9 beaten eggs,
from July through September. 2-3 papery bracts per-
sist throughout flowering at the base off the cluster. ¼ cup flour, ½ cup milk, ⁹̸₁₀ of the chopped onion
leaves, 2 tbsp. fresh thyme leaves, 2 tbsp. fresh pars-
The flowering umbel measures 2-3 inches (5-7cm)
ley leaves. Mix well and pour into pastry shell. Bake
across, and each 0.25-inch (0.6cm) flower has 3 se-
at 350°F (175°C) for 45 min. Top with remaining
pals and 3 petals that flare outward into a small star-
chopped onion leaves.
like whorl. Dry fruit chambers measure 0.15 inches
(0.3cm) across containing capsules with black seeds. WARNING: Allium species are toxic to dogs and cats.
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