Wild Onions - Collecting, Gathering and Recipe Inspiration

*Update*
March 30, 2012 - I came back and added some pictures and back links to wild onion recipes I have tried.  Enjoy!


Wild onions are out right now in the Midwest.  These are the dainty little onions with some powerful flavor - super oniony.  I collected a bag full out on the back side of the arboretum.  In the arboretum proper these have been weeded out.  They are considered an invasive species; a delicious, edible invasive species. 

Here's what they look like growing in the woods:

Now these aren't ramps. 
These are ramps:

Most of these recipes and ideas will also work for ramps.  Ramps have a milder flavor and are more prized in the foraging community.  However, there aren't any near me, so I settled for wild onions.  Here's more information on ramps if you are interested.

Right now is a great time to harvest both ramps and wild onions.  As things get hotter so will the wild onions and wild onions are already pretty potent. When they flower they will use up all of their stored energy and they won't have much of a bulb left.  Then they go dormant for the hot part of the summer.  In the cool of the fall they will sprout again and put on growth for the spring, so you see the best time to pick them is spring.

Now what shall I do with my onions.  Here's the recipes I have tried and made into blog posts:

Wild Onion and Rosemary Bread - Recipe

Wild Onion and Mushroom Polenta - Recipe

Frittata with Wild Onion, Potato, Goat Cheese and Thyme - Vegetarian Recipe

Wild Onion, Mushroom and Egg Sandwiches - Recipe

I also came across these recipes:

• Wild Onion Tart from Edible Austin (Texas)
• Wild Onion Pesto from Edible Rhody (Rhode Island)
• Wild Onions and Eggs from Cherokee Favorite (Oklahoma)
• Wild Onion and Mushroom Polenta (Indiana)

 The Cherokee Gathering Place website tells the story of wild onions in their history:

Gathering wild onions in spring is a ritual among the Oklahoma Cherokees, as well as the other tribes who live where these wonderful plants grow. Wild onions are often frozen and kept for months so they can be eaten the rest of the year.

Wild Onions have an important social aspect among many Indian people in eastern Oklahoma, including Cherokees. In the early spring, many Indian churches, stompgrounds, clubs and other groups hold wild onion dinners. Families and friends also often make an outing of gathering wild onions and/or eating them together. The wild onions are prepared by frying them with eggs and are usually served with other Indian dishes such as fry bread and grape dumplings. Wild onions grow in a variety of conditions but are best gathered where a loose moist soil promotes thick growth and easy digging. Timbered bottomlands are favored. Cattle grazing effectively eliminates the digging of wild onions. Wild onions are among the earliest greenery to emerge in the spring and cattle like to crop off young blaldes, making it impossible for humans to find them even if they survive the grazing. The milk of dairy cows grazing on wild onions takes on a strong flavor that most people find objectionable.

What are you doing with your wild onions?