Vidalia onions, botanical name Allium cepa, are a short day, sweet yellow granex hybrid variety. Short day varieties are considered fresh-eating onions and although the Vidalia can be stored for up to six month in controlled air storage conditions, they are best suited to be stored and eaten within three months.

Vidalia onions are rounded with flat bottoms, and have a pale copper-gold, thin parchment-like skin with a milky, semi-translucent white flesh. They are predominantly considered the sweetest onion variety. Their delicate sweetness can be attributed to the region's mild climate, sandy and low sulfur soil, exclusive seed varieties and farming practices.

Serving Ideas

Vidalia onions can be used in all onion preparations because of their high sugar content. Complimentary ingredients include butter, cardamon, celery, chicories, cloves, curry, foods cooked over a wood-fire, foods rich in umami such as mushrooms, yeasty breads, seaweed, ripe cheeses and braised meats, roasted nuts, asparagus, pineapple, shelling beans, smoked fish, pickled vegetables, citrus and chiles.

Ethnic/Cultural Info

Vidalia onions are the official state vegetable of Georgia. Each Spring, Vidalia hosts a five day festival celebrating its native onion and its culinary attributes.

Geography/History

The Vidalia onion was first cultivated during the Great Depression in 1931 by Moses Coleman in Toombs County Georgia. Its growing area is entrenched in and defined by a 20-county region of Georgia per legislation passed in Georgia in 1986. The name “Vidalia” had also been trademarked and is still owned by the Georgia Department of Agriculture. As Vidalia onions are a short day variety, they are best suited to warm, Southern climates with milder winters and longer days of sunlight in the spring and summer, when they are harvested.

Seasons/Availability

Vidalia onions are available from April through late June.