Many years ago, a friend taught me her method of how to store onions by hanging them. I tried it right away, and was hooked! Hanging is one of the easiest, quickest, and best ways to store onions because it only uses a rope, and the onions themselves.
Why Store Onions by Hanging Them?
What I love most about this method is that you can easily see each and every onion, so you can keep track of any that are rotting. That is much more difficult when you store onions several layers deep in a basket or bag!
This is the best way to store onions in a way that is space-saving too. It’s a great way to save and use your onion harvest throughout the year.
When to Store Onions
Before hanging, you’ll want to make sure your onions are fully cured – I like to lay mine out in a shaded, covered, but the well-ventilated location for two weeks or so, until the outer skins are papery and the stalks are fully dry.
When you’re ready to use an onion, simply cut it off the rope.
Where to Keep Hanging Onions
It’s best to store onions in a cool dry place, like a shed or a root cellar. Read my Building a Homestead Root Cellar Ebook to get started!
How Long do Hanging Onions Last?
After curing and hanging to store onions, they should last for at least up to 6 months or more. This is a great way to keep fresh onions in your mix all year long!
Try this recipe for fermented honey with red onions and thyme for a delicious way to preserve some of your onions!
Another great preservation recipe is this quick and easy refrigerator pickled onions!
How to Hang Onions
Check out this video tutorial below, and give it a try with this year’s onion crop!
This is soooooo beautiful!!
Thanks Mary! We have the finished product hanging in our house!
In addition to the fact that this looks so very, very much easier than the braiding I tried for the first time this year, you’ve explained why some of mine have soft spots at the top of the onion. I braided then cured instead of vice versa. Lesson learned. That said, mine is a very small apartment with no shed available, so I guess having to cull out the imperfectly cured ones is better than jumping through hoops to find a place to cure them outside (or inside, for that matter).
Yes, I can see how that would be challenging! Just keep a closer eye on your onions so you notice the brown spots early. And maybe try to hang your onions in the driest, coolest, and most ventilated part of your apartment.
I just pulled the last of my onions. After cleaning them up I tie small bundles by the stems to hang and dry. I dry them under the porch before taking them indoors to hang in our storage room. Do you have any problems with onion maggots? If you do, I’d love to hear your tips on how to minimize their damage. – Margy
I find it a bit hard to tell what you’re doing here. Are you just twisting the onion stems around the rope?
Yes, twist the onion stalk around the rope, and make sure the onion end is on top, which locks it in place. The weight of the onion holds everything together.