Like some other aromatic roots, onions can be distilled into an essential oil. Although onion oil isn’t typically used in aromatherapy, it’s a useful cooking ingredient in many different types of recipes.
Onion oil can be used as a substitute for chopped or sliced onions, or to add flavoring, in several different types of dishes:
•Dressings
•Marinades
•Condiments
•Soups
•Gravy
•Bread
•Dip
•Tomato sauce
•Other pasta sauces
It blends especially well into wet marinades or sauces where solid onions might disrupt the texture. It is also ideal for the creation of bottled, canned, or jarred items in which fresh onions are not ideal for proper keeping of the flavor. The essential oil can also be drizzled in different types of vegetables as well as white or red meat, either during or after cooking. It is useful in a wide range of cuisines.
Because onion has a strong, distinct flavor, especially when distilled, it is typically used in smaller amounts. Along with blending well into certain types of recipes, the essential oil form is easier to store and to manage in large quantities than fresh onions, which take up more space. It is safe to use without being an irritant, and without the flavor being particularly overpowering.
Along with culinary usefulness, onion oil is said to have both internal and external medical usefulness. Some of the effects claimed include allergy relief, throat irritation relief, immune system boosting, and lowering of blood pressure and blood sugar.
These medical effects have not been substantiated, although claims that it can help treat tear ducts may be connected to the eye irritation caused by raw onions. Onion oil does have much of the same nutritional value of onion bulbs. It is sometimes included in formulas for natural minor respiratory treatments.Along with being a skin treatment, onion oil is also said to help stimulate hair growth. This has also not been substantiated.