After
writing yesterday’s post I was drawn to the idea of wartime onions. Were they
ever in short supply? And if so, how on earth did the British manage without this
ubiquitous staple vegetable?
The supply
must have been reasonable at the beginning of October, 1940, if we are to judge
from that week’s Ministry of Food’s Food
Facts leaflet which did not compromise on the amount of onion suggested in the
following recipe:
Scalloped Potatoes.
Potatoes are very warming and invigorating.
Serve them often, and for a change, try using them this way. Scrub 2 lbs.
potatoes and cut them into thin slices. Peel and slice ½ lb. onions. Mix
together 1 heaped tablespoonful flour, 1 teaspoonful salt and pepper to taste.
Grease a pie dish. Put in alternate layers of potatoes and onions, sprinkling
each layer with the seasoned flour. The top layer should be of potatoes. Pour
in 3 teacupfuls hot milk and bake for about 1 hour in a moderate oven. This
makes enough for 4 or 5 people.
By the
end of the month of October however, the public were being advised in the current
Food Facts leaflet that onions were in short supply.
Concerning Onions.
Onions are short – no, not in
size, in quantity. Meanwhile remember the leek. The leek has the same kind of flavor,
but more delicate. Chop the green part finely and you’ll find it gives a good
taste to your dishes. (Leeks and potatoes together make a dish for which a
whole province of France is famous.) Much more use, too, should be made of
dried English herbs, thyme, mint, sage, marjoram and chervil.
The
following week (November 4) the Food
Facts leaflet gave an even more interesting suggestion for making the most
of the onion:
Make your
own Flavourings.
No
wasting of celery and spring onion tops this year, please. Shred the tops
finely and either sprinkle them into salads, or dry them and store them in jars
for flavouring soups and stews in the winter. The outside golden skins of
onions can be dried, powdered, and used for flavouring.
Now, that
is an idea I have never come across before – using powdered onion skin to add flavour!
Onions were in very short supply. I remember reading someplace about a wealthy couple having been sent an onion and rather than cooking it, used it as a display at their table. Also, I recall reading about auctioning onions. I couldn't find a link to the article I read, but I found these for you, if you're interested
ReplyDeletehttp://thefoodiebugle.com/article/cooks/onions-at-war
And there is a mention of an onion being auctioning in this article,
http://www.culture24.org.uk/history-and-heritage/military-history/world-war-two/art76114
"Some “exotic” fruits like bananas disappeared almost totally from wartime Britain: in July 1943, actor Derrick de Marney auctioned off a single banana which fetched £5, while a single onion was raffled round the office of “The Times” and reached over £4."