Scallion

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A scallion, also commonly known as spring onion, green onion, or salad onion, is associated with various members of the genus Allium that lack a fully-developed bulb. Harvested for their taste, they tend to be milder than other onions and may be steamed or set in salads in western cookery and cooked in many Asian recipes. Diced scallions are often used in soup, noodle and seafood dishes, and in sauces in eastern dishes, after removing the bottom quarter-inch or so of the root end.

The species most commonly associated with the name is the Welsh onion, Allium fistulosum. "Scallion" is sometimes used for Allium ascalonicum, better known as the shallot. The words scallion and shallot are related and can be traced back to the Greek askolonion as described by the Greek writer Theophrastus; this name, in turn, seems to originate from the Philistine town of Ascalon (modern-day Ashkelon in Israel). The shallots themselves apparently came from farther east.^[1]

Contents 1 Other names 2 Varieties 2.1 Escallion 3 External links 4 See also 5 References

[edit] Other names

Scallions have various common names throughout the world. In some countries, green onions are called shallots, and shallots are referred to by alternative names such as eschallot or eschalotte.

• Argentina: They are called cebolla de verdeo, that is "green onion" (literally "onion of greening").
• Australia: The common name is shallots, but spring onion is also heard.
• Austria: While the German Frühlingszwiebel, that is, "spring onion", can sometimes be heard, the more common term is Jungzwiebel, that is "young onion."
• Bolivia: They are called "cebolla verde," that is "green onion."
• Bosnia: They are called "mladi luk," meaning "young onion." It's most commonly prepared as a side dish, mixed with cottage cheese and/or sour cream.
• Brazil: cebolinha-verde, meaning "small green onion" and is usually sold in combination with coriander as cheiro verde, literally meaning "green smell". "Cebolinha" is also the name of a popular comic strip character, named so because of his scallion-like hair. In English, he is known as Jimmy Five.
• Bulgaria: пресен лук meaning "fresh onion". Extensively used in various popular Bulgarian salads, usually in combination with lettuce and tomatoes.
• Cambodia: They are called ដើមខ្ទឹម, pronounced slirk k'tum, which literally means "leafy onion."
• Canada: Known as green onion.
• Canada, Quebec: Known as échalote.
• China: They are usually called cōng (葱).
• Chile: They are usually called cebollín, something like small onion.
• Colombia: They are usually called cebolla en rama (literally, "branch onion") or cebolla larga (literally, "long onion"). There is also a thinner and smaller variety called cebollín.
• Cuba: They are usually called cebollino, which translates to "small onion."
• Czech Republic: Jarní cibulka, which literally means "spring onion."
• Denmark: Forårsløg, which literally translates to "spring onion."
• Dominican Republic: puerro or cebolla verde. The former means "leek," and the later means "green onion." Also, "puerro fino" or "puerro chino" (thins scallion and chinese scallion, respectively).
• Egypt: baṣal axḍar, meaning "green onion". A traditional vegetable eaten in the spring season and associated with the sham en-nasim festival.
• Estonia: Värske sibul meaning "fresh onion".
• Finland: "Vihersipuli", meaning 'green onion', or "kevätsipuli – 'spring onion.'
• France: Known as ciboule.
• Germany: Frühlingszwiebel, which literally means "spring onion." Also Winterzwiebel, meaning "winter onion", and Lauchzwiebel, meaning "leek onion".
• Greece: φρέσκο (ή πράσινο) κρεμμύδι (fresko (or prasino) kremmydi), which literally means fresh (or green) onion, or -more traditionally- "πρασουλίδα".
• Guatemala: Known as puerro, translated as "leek."
• Hong Kong: Commonly known as spring onion.
• Hungary: They are called zöldhagyma, which translates to "green onion", but its more common name újhagyma translates to "new onion."
• Iceland: vorlaukur, which literally means "spring onion."
• Israel: batzal yarok, which literally means "green onion."
• Italy: They are usually called cipollotti (the ones as seen in picture) or "scalogno" (the ones having the bulb larger in shape than leaves). Otherwise, the term "cipolline novelle" is used to define little normal onions, often sold peeled to be cooked or pickled under winegar.
• India: They may be referred to as spring onions.
• Indonesia: They are referred to as daun bawang which literally means "onion leaf", a name derived from their green and leafy appearance.
• Iran: They are referred to as piaz-cheh, which translates to "young onion". They are usually eaten raw.
• Japan: negi (ねぎ^?). Traditionally, green scallions similar to those available in other countries have been used in the Kansai region; Kyoto's kujo negi is a representative variety of this type. In the Kantō region, large white-stalked varieties such as tokyo negi outwardly resemble leeks, although their culinary use is closer to scallions than to leeks.
• Korea: pa (hangul: 파).
• Macedonia, Republic of: They are called млад кромид meaning "young onion."
• Malay: They are called daun bawang which literally means "onion leaves."
• México: They are called cebollitas which translates to "little onions."
• Netherlands, The: bosuitjes, which contrary to popular belief does not refer to the forest but to the fact that they are sold in bosjes (bunches), or lente-uitjes, which translates to "spring onions."
• New Zealand: They are called spring onions.
• Norway: They are called vårløk, which translates to "spring onion."
• Panama: They are called cebollinas, or "small onions."
• Peru: They are called cebollita china which literally means "little chinese onion."
• Philippines, Cagayan: Known as lasuna, especially the dark, green scallions. Used widely in sauces and garnishes. In Cebu: sibuyas dahunan derived from the two local words sibuyas meaning "onion" and dahunan meaning "leafy" or "with a leaf". Tagalog-speaking areas refer to it as: sibuyas na mura which literally means "young onion."
• Poland: Known as dymka, which cannot be directly translated but could be interpreted by native speakers as "small smoke" (with feminine grammatical gender).
• Republic of Ireland: The term scallions is commonly used.
• Romania: They are called ceapă verde, which translates to "green onion" or "immature onion."
• Russia: They are known as зелёный лук which literally translates to "green onion."
• Scotland: they may be referred to as cibies or syboes
• Serbia: They are known as mladi luk meaning "young onion."
• Slovakia: Translated as wild onions.
• Slovenia: They are called mlada čebula which literally translates to "young onion."
• Spain, Andalusia: They are known as cebollines (plural), cebollín (singular), meaning "small onion."
• Spain, Catalonia: There is a variety known as calçot, (though this can be used to mean the immature sprout of an ordinary onion after over-wintering). They are eaten roasted and accompanied by a savoury dip.
• Sweden: They are known as salladslök, which translates to "salad onion." Some people use vårlök which is a literal translation of spring onion, but actually refers to Gagea lutea.
• Thailand: They are called ต้นหอม (ton hom or "stemmed onion") and are eaten raw as a condiment to many foods, chopped and used as garnish or used with other vegetables to make stock.
• Turkey: They are called either taze soğan or yeşil soğan, which literally means "fresh onion" or "green onion."
• United Kingdom and some Commonwealth countries, including Singapore: The most common name is spring onion. In Wales, they are uncommonly referred to as gibbons (pronounced jib-uns), in Northern Ireland the name scallion is preferred.
• United States: scallion or green onion. The term green onion can also be used in reference to immature specimens of the ordinary onion (Allium cepa).
• Venezuela: They are called cebollín, which literally means "small onion."
• Vietnam: They are called hành lá, which literally means "leafy onion."

[edit] Varieties

White Lisbon (Allium cepa)
White Lisbon Winter Hardy (Allium cepa)- an extra-hardy variety for overwintering.
Parade (Allium fistulosum)
Performer (Allium fistulosum)

[edit] Escallion

The escallion (Allium ascalonicum L.^[2], pronounced scallion with its silent e) is a culinary herb. Grown in Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago, it is similar in appearance to the scallion, Welsh onion and leek, though said by Jamaicans to be more flavoursome. Like these others, it is a (relatively) mild onion that does not form a large bulb.

The Jamaican name is probably a variant of scallion, although like scallion, this term is itself used loosely at different times to denote the spring onion, the leek, the shallot and the green stalk of the immature garden onion (Allium cepa). The spelling escalion is recorded in the eighteenth century; scallion is older, dating from at least the fourteenth century. To add to the confusion, the spring onion is known in some countries as the eschallot. However, the OED's reference to escalions in Phillip H. Gosse's Birds of Jamaica (1847) implies that Gosse knew the shallot and the escalion to be different herbs, and this article accepts that authority.^[3] The term escallion is now not current in English outside its Jamaican usage.

Escallion is a common and much prized ingredient in authentic Jamaican cuisine, in combination with thyme, scotch bonnet pepper, garlic and allspice (called pimento). Recipes calling for escallion sometimes suggest the use of leek as a substitute, though in salads, scallions would be more appropriate; neither is seen by Jamaicans as truly adequate. Jamaican dried spice mixtures that include escallion are available commercially. Fresh escallion is difficult to find and expensive outside Jamaica itself.

[edit] External links

• Varieties of Japanese negi

[edit] See also

• Leek
• Allium tricoccum

[edit] References

1. ^ Allium Crop Science: recent advances at Google Books, last retrieved 2007-03-31
2. ^ On-farm research for the development and promotion of improved agroforestry systems for steeplands in the Caribbean - page 12 shows classification of escallion.
3. ^ Oxford English Dictionary