An Extended Fugue in the Key of Chili; Part Four

Onions and Garlic

These two members of the allium family are the heart and soul of the kind of cooking that floats my boat.  

Now the best onions and garlic come out of your own garden.  They are a pain to grow in this part of the clear cut (too damn wet) but it can be done and it is well worth the effort.  This year they will be the boys responsibility along with the taters and the green leafy’s in the back yard. 

What I am getting sick of is sweet onions.  If you are a salad fan, these are great.  But when you are cooking food with some flavor, they absolutely suck.  The trouble is, the sweet onion seeds and sets are crowding out the older, pungent varieties.

Pungent onions and garlic are what make good Mexican, Asian, and Mediterranean cooking.  Sweet onions merely turn it into a blandish ghost of good chow…suitable for the pre-processed palates of good boring Canadians.

So, try and get the most pungent onions that you can find for your food.  If you are growing your own, I am trying these this year for onions from Heirloom Seeds

4014 - AUSTRALIAN  BROWN  110 days - Dating from 1894, this Aussie heirloom produces medium sized, flattened, dark brown skinned globes. The crisp, yellow flesh is extremely pungent. Stores well.
PKT. - 50 seeds - $2.00

Now, since this is a prepper rant, you should also have back up positions in your preps.  I tend to steer away from the onion powder in stores, preferring instead #10 cans of this in the basement.

Garlic powder I get from Costco with the other spices there like black pepper.  Good stuff.  Try and keep some of this stored away in your preps as garlic makes every bland thing worth eating.