In an era where many of us are thinking about ecological sustainability, reducing personal food waste, and saving money while cutting down on the amount of food restaurants toss out, is it any wonder that we're also trying to maximize every scrap of ingredient that comes through the kitchen? Today we'll take a look at onion skins, which you can find in just about any household throughout the year thanks to the popularity of onion in all kinds of recipes (TikTok's viral onion boil, anyone?).
You can use your onion skins for compost, sure, but these babies are actually edible and chock full of flavonoids and vitamins A, C and E, along with antioxidants. Instead of giving them back to Mother Nature just yet, you can make your onion skins into onion powder in just a few easy steps.
First, take your onion skins and remove any food labels. Rinse them off well in water. Dry them and lay them on a silicone-lined baking tray, making sure they're all spread apart, and pop that tray into the oven. Long and low is the key here: a low temperature for a long time, until the skins aren't flexible and snap in half cleanly. From there, just pop them into a food processor, blender or grinder and blend them until you have yourself a fine powder. You can store this in an airtight container in a cool, dry place, and it should last you a several months.
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You can use homemade onion powder like you would store-bought. Season your next batch of hot dogs with it, make an easy at-home teriyaki sauce, or even recreate your own version of Dorito's famous seasoning powder. I personally enjoy adding some to rice for a bit of extra flavor when I'm chowing down on a bowl of spam and eggs. This air fryer cottage cheese flatbread looks like the exact kind of comfort food we could all use as the cold months settle in, or any time of the year, honestly. Even though you can use this like store-bought onion powder, you'll be able to taste the difference right away; it's no contest that homemade is the way to go.
When choosing your storage container, consider how you're going to get your powder out of it, too. Some containers come with shaker tops for easy sprinkling, while you might have to bust out the measuring spoon to dip into others. You can use this in a 1:1 replacement ratio for store-bought onion powder, so no worries about putting your math cap on, either. It's just an easy, simple ingredient that saves a bit of food waste to boot.
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