Here is everything you need to know about green onions’ shelf life and deterioration. Learn how to store green onions, how long they last, and how to spot a bad one.
Concerned that a large number of green onions you purchased may go bad before you can use them? Or perhaps you already have some sitting in storage for a while and are starting to look suspect, and you’re wondering how to tell whether green onions are bad. In the refrigerator, how long do green onions last?
This article is for you if one of those statements applies.
What are Green Onions?
Allium species from the genus Allium are the source of the vegetable known as scallions, commonly referred to as spring or green onions. Garlic, shallot, leek, chive, and Chinese onions are relatives of shallots and have a milder flavor than most onions.
Although many Allium species have edible bulbs, scallion species are distinguished by the absence of a completely grown bulb. On the other hand, the Allium species known as scallions depend on the hollow, tubular green leaves that emerge directly from the bulb. These leaves are consumed both fresh and cooked as a vegetable. The leaves are frequently minced and added to other recipes as garnishes.
How Long do Green Onions Last in the Fridge?
When stored in the refrigerator and wrapped in plastic, green onions last for 7 to 14 days. By placing green onions in a freezer bag and covering them in a moist paper towel, you can increase that time frame by roughly a week. It’s acceptable to cut the onions in half to fit the bag.
Scallions are good for about that amount of time.
They’ll probably keep their quality for approximately a week, maybe up to 10 days, if you just throw them in the fridge in the bag they came in.
They can last up to two weeks if you take the time to ensure they are placed in a moderately damp location, like the vegetable drawer.
The time that vegetables may be stored depends on their quality, so if your scallions don’t start off looking wonderful, they’ll probably only last a few days.
If you need to store yours for longer, tightly wrapping them in a moist (not wet) paper towel will assist. Using a similar method, chives can also be stored.
(As you can see, ordinary onions don’t need refrigeration and stay noticeably longer than green onions.)
How to Properly Store Green Onions?
In the Refrigerator
It would help if you always stored green onions in the same way, regardless of the variety you purchase—plain green onions, scallions, or spring onions.
Trim any damaged outer leaves and remove the root end.
The green onion should be put into an airtight bag or container with a desiccant.
For this, you can use dryer sheets or baking soda.
Be sure to wrap them firmly to prevent air from entering.
After that, place the container in your refrigerator’s crisper drawer.
The green onions will stay cold and avoid drying out, thanks to this.
When should Green Onions in the Fridge be Changed?
In the refrigerator, green onions typically last for four to five weeks.
They will start to become limp and lose their sharpness after that
Nevertheless, there are methods for further extending their life.
Green onions, for instance, can be frozen and used in dishes later.
Dehydrating them and making chips out of them is another option.
The best way to dehydrate green onions is described in this instruction.
You might also try adding salt to the water when rinsing, as was already advised.
The vegetable’s texture and nutrient content will be preserved if you do this.
The green onions can also be thinly sliced and marinated in olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic.
They’ll taste better thanks to these.
What Distinguishes Green Onions and Scallions?
Scallions and green onions are the same things. They can come from other types that never develop bulbs, or they can be taken from the common bulb-forming onions we are all familiar with at a very young age.
Scallions are long and have a straight, white stem end. They have a light onion flavor that isn’t as strong as normal onions (the white parts contain the most intense flavor). They can be used raw or cooked, and while some chefs toss the darker green tips, the entire plant can be consumed. Asian cuisine frequently uses these vegetables.
Normally, you can get onions all year long. A vibrant hue, unblemished leaves, and sturdy stem ends are desirable.
What are the Different Types of Green Onions?
There are four types of green onions available. All of these types have various use.
Basic Green Onions
Although spring onions and green onions are sometimes mistaken, there is a way to distinguish between the two. Compared to spring onions, green onions have a significantly smaller bulbs. As a result, they are relatively mild, and cutting them won’t make your eyes sting as much as cutting a conventional onion would.
They are edible, either raw or cooked. Soups, stews, and other foods are often seasoned with green onions, often used in stir-fries.
Chives
Typically, chives are used as a garnish. They taste slightly like garlic despite being members of the onion family. Always use discretion because it can be extremely potent and intense.
Spring Onions
While spring onions resemble green onions, they have a larger and thinner bulbs. They are readily accessible throughout the summer and have a savory, crispy texture. These are frequently used in Asian soups and stews as garnishes. You can prepare them with different vegetables or eat them raw.
How to Use Green Onions?
Green Onions have the excellent quality of being mild enough to be eaten fresh or only very little cooked, preserving their crisp texture.
Green Onions can be cooked whole or sliced, although they’re probably best eaten raw in salads, as crudites, or as a last-minute sauce garnish. Frequently used as a garnish in many different recipes, scallions are common in Asian and Latin American cuisine.
Cebollitas, or baby white onions with their shoots still attached, are a kind of scallions with larger, more bulbous bottoms frequently used in Latin American cuisine. But scallions’ more popular variant has straight, cylindrical shoots.
Cooked onions are frequently added to stir-fries to keep them crisp as one of the last components. They impart more flavor to the dish when finely sliced; however, larger pieces impart more taste when consumed. They are frequently used in salad dressings and marinades.
How to Recognize Bad Green Onions?
Examine your Green Onions
The first approach to determine if your scallions are bad is to look at how they seem. The leaves of newly harvested green onions should be crisp. Similar to the green leaves, turning dark, brown, or black indicates that the green onions have lost their freshness. Scallions that have leaves that are falling off or appear wilted should not be used because this indicates that they are rotten.
By the Expiry Date
Like other fresh vegetables, green onions have no sell-by or expiration date. You must use the purchase dates to estimate the age of the scallions. Green onions’ real shelf life varies depending on the kind, how it is kept, and whether it is whole or cut.
Choose green onions that still have vibrant green colors while shopping for them. The stems should appear strong, unharmed, and healthy.
Beware of Mold
While dark or brown spots on scallions indicate soil-borne fungus, persistent spots on the outer layers of the leafy strand may indicate that your scallions are beginning to go bad. On the cut edge of sliced green onions, mold typically appears as fine white hairs.
Discoloration
As its name suggests, green onions have a distinctive greenish, verdant color. Therefore, if your scallions suddenly start turning yellow or brown, they may be bad.
Rotten or Unpleasant Odor
You should smell the onions to see if they are fresh, in addition to looking at the scallions and the expiration dates. Scallions in their fresh state smell like onions, whereas bad onions smell rotting or terrible.
Why do Green Onions Deteriorate?
How long a bouquet of raw green onions from the grocery store will stay fresh depends on what you do with them after purchasing them. The likelihood that your green onions will spoil quickly if you throw them in the refrigerator without any water or protection is considerable.
Green onions resemble leafy greens and herbs more than regular onions and root crops. Because of this, their storage circumstances are slightly different.
For green onions to stay fresh for a longer period, the same conditions as other fresh products must be present.
Green onions can stay fresh for up to a year or even longer when properly frozen. Green onions can last longer than a few days when kept in the refrigerator.
Otherwise, green onions may lose their crisp freshness and flavor sooner if stored at room temperature or under unfavorable storage circumstances.
What are the Side Effects of Consuming Green Onions?
When taken in moderation, spring onions often don’t have any visible adverse effects. Although allergies are uncommon, some people may react hypersensitively to eating spring onions or scallions, resulting in runny noses, itchy eyes and skin, and wheezing; as a result, they should avoid this vegetable.
Additionally, consuming too many spring onions can cause digestive problems, including heartburn, acid reflux, irritable bowel syndrome, nausea, and bloating. Therefore, you must include this green vegetable in your diet in small amounts each day.
The vast majority of foodborne infections are linked to fresh produce. Fruits and vegetables may be regarded as high-risk foods because they are frequently eaten raw without special inactivation procedures. Therefore, nonthermal therapies for the inactivation of foodborne pathogens must be assessed. This study examines the inactivation of three viruses by UV light, including the feline calicivirus (a substitute for the norovirus) and two picornaviruses, the hepatitis A virus and the Aichi virus. Three types of vegetables were chosen because of their various surface topographies and connections to outbreaks. Individually spot-inoculated with 107 to 109 50% tissue culture infective doses (TCID50) of each virus per milliliter, green onions, lettuce, and strawberries were then exposed to UV radiation at varying dosages (240 mW s/cm2), and viruses were eluted utilizing an optimized recovery strategy.
Conclusion
If you want to keep your green onions fresh and tasty for a long time, you should try to store them properly. This way, you will not only preserve them, but you will also reduce food waste. There are various ways you can do this.
One of the best ways is to wrap them in a paper towel. This is because it will help absorb excess moisture, prolonging their shelf life. In addition, it will prevent slime from forming on them. You can use a plastic bag if you do not have a paper towel. To get the best effect, you should wrap the white part of the onion in a paper towel while wrapping the green part in the bag. Then, it would be best if you put the bundle in a storage container.
