Georgia Sweets In Season
Now’s the time to scoop up juicy and sweet Vidalia onions, the pride of Georgia prized around the world for their mild flavor without the pungency or bite. When you think of sweet onions, Vidalia’s are usually the first to come to mind. The namesake of Vidalia is a town located in a southeast Georgia county about an hour outside Savannah, where the onions were discovered about 75 years ago by a local farmer who realized his onions tasted sweet, not hot. He soon garnered top dollar for his crops. When the Depression hit, other local farmers, seeing their neighbor’s good fortune, planted the yellow Granex seeds and finally received fair prices for their produce.
Within 10 years, these unique onions were sold in Vidalia’s farmers market and eventually Piggly Wiggly, which help spread the onion’s reputation. Thanks to the region’s climate and soil’s lower level of sulfur, only 13 Georgia counties and parts of 7 others are permitted to grow and sell onions with the Vidalia® label. Today growers plant over 14,000 acres of Vidalia onions annually yielding about 20,000 pounds of onions. To earn Vidalia status, they must undergo strict inspections to check for taste, physical characteristics and chemical composition.
Onions are harvested from mid to late-April through June. Because of their delicate nature, Vidalias are usually harvested by hand and then held in a controlled environment which allows them to be stored and sold into fall or winter.
Cholesterol free and low in sodium, Vidalias are a good source of vitamin C. Choose onions that feel heavy for their size with a dry, papery skin. Avoid any onion that has sprouted or feels spongy. Store uncut onions in a cool, dry, well-ventilated place, or, to preserve onions for a longer period of time, wrap each onion in a paper towel and refrigerate until ready to use.
Within 10 years, these unique onions were sold in Vidalia’s farmers market and eventually Piggly Wiggly, which help spread the onion’s reputation. Thanks to the region’s climate and soil’s lower level of sulfur, only 13 Georgia counties and parts of 7 others are permitted to grow and sell onions with the Vidalia® label. Today growers plant over 14,000 acres of Vidalia onions annually yielding about 20,000 pounds of onions. To earn Vidalia status, they must undergo strict inspections to check for taste, physical characteristics and chemical composition.
Onions are harvested from mid to late-April through June. Because of their delicate nature, Vidalias are usually harvested by hand and then held in a controlled environment which allows them to be stored and sold into fall or winter.
Cholesterol free and low in sodium, Vidalias are a good source of vitamin C. Choose onions that feel heavy for their size with a dry, papery skin. Avoid any onion that has sprouted or feels spongy. Store uncut onions in a cool, dry, well-ventilated place, or, to preserve onions for a longer period of time, wrap each onion in a paper towel and refrigerate until ready to use.
| Classic French Onion Soup |
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Rosanne Toroian
Food Editor & Information Spet
Schnuck Markets, Inc.
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