"Those wild onions cut down by your mower are cousins to the one you buy and are perfectly edible (as long as you don't slather your lawn with pesticides, herbicides or any other kind of chemical killing device). They're both alliums, the family that includes garlic, shallots and onions."

"What to call the skinny ones sold in bunches of six? Take your pick: green onions, spring onions, young onions, pencil onions, scallions, they're all names for the same thing. (Scallions, though, are actually the name of a milder separate variety, too.) Technically, it's an immature onion. Left in the ground to grow, they'll eventually form an onion bulb. Pulled early, though, they are a delectable treat that's great for onion lovers as well as those who aren't quite so fond of the flavorful bulb."

"For gardeners, it's the easiest vegetable you'll ever grow. Buy onion sets (small bulbs) from your favorite garden center or catalog, then as soon as you can work the soil, push them about an inch into the soil, pointy end up. In four weeks, you'll have green onions. To harvest them, grab the stalk close to the soil and pull gently. Shake off the loose soil--hose it off if you have water handy--and start enjoying your homegrown treat. The fresh ones are so much better than those that have been sitting around in the grocery store for who knows how long."

"Plant the bulbs about once a month during the growing season for a summer-long supply. You can choose from white, yellow or red varieties. I especially love the red ones--their color makes for a dramatic change from the traditional white."

"When buying them at the grocery store or pulling them from your garden, keep in mind that larger, older ones have a stronger flavor than the smaller ones. At the store, look for ones that are crisp with bright green leaves. Leave behind any with limp or faded stalks. They'll keep for a little over a week wrapped in plastic in the fridge."

"To prepare them, first cut off the roots and peel away the outer layer of the onion to remove any lingering dirt. Next, rinse the leaves, spreading them gently with your fingers to get at the dirt in the crevices."

"These onion adolescents add a mild onion flavor to food. This mildness makes their entrance acceptable in places where the grown-up version is considered too rowdy. While many recipes call only for the white part, ignoring the tasty leaves is a waste. Their flavor is milder than the root end and they add wonderful color as an accent or garnish. You can even use them to tie appetizers up into little packages--particularly tasty with smoked salmon."

"They can be simple or elegant, and are as at home on in a down-home kitchen as they are in the finest restaurant. Why? You can just as easily chomp on them along with catfish as scatter them artistically over a salad."

"Nearly every culinary culture uses these immature onions. It's a part of the Asian triumvirate of seasonings, along with garlic and ginger, where they appear in soups, stir-fries and many other Asian dishes. Europeans use them along with shallots to flavor many sauces and toss them on as a garnish to add flavor."

"At home, serve green onions sliced over broiled or baked fish. Salads come alive when you sprinkle sliced green onions over them.
... read the whole article