The Core of an Onion

October 30, 2023
Journalist Kurlansky (Big Lies) follows up his deep dives into salt, cod, and oysters with a charmingly eclectic look at the onion’s uses across history and culture. Among other topics, he investigates why the vegetable elicits tears (when cut, they release “highly reactive” sulfur compounds, some of which “dissolve into the water of the eyes”); outlines its non-culinary uses (an Olympic athlete in ancient Greece might “eat a pound of onions and also drink onion juice, and rub onion on his body” for good fortune, while Pliny the Elder credited the vegetable with treating everything from bad vision to dysentery); and captures its place in art and literature (“There is probably no other vegetable that is the subject of as many poems”). Kurlansky has a tendency to cycle rapidly through a wealth of fascinating trivia, which can make for a jarring reading experience, and he sometimes skimps on proof, as when he doesn’t cite a source for his claim that the Baniya people of India don’t eat red onions because of their resemblance to meat. Still, Kurlansky’s gentle humor and seamless transitions from history to science to culinary appreciation are a delight, as are the charming recipes interspersed throughout. When he asserts in the final chapters that “there is no better vegetable,” many readers will be convinced. It’s a delicious celebration of an underappreciated food.