Sweet and Sour Medicine Onion

The wonderful sweet and sour Medicine Onion is a simple and genuine product but very rich in flavour.

Excellent to accompany second courses. meat, boiled meats or for tasty appetizers and aperitifs.

The Medicina onion, still little known, is one of the onions that best lends itself to cooking, awarded for this by illustrious chefs.

The Medicina onion is registered with a collective trademark at the Chamber of Commerce. It is cultivated on a total area of ​​700/800 hectares, distributed in 6 municipalities in the province of Bologna. (Medicine, Castel Guelfo, Castel San Pietro Terme, Ozzano Emilia, Dozza and Imola). Almost 10% of national production can be traced back to the Cipolla di Medicina brand which has around 150 producing agricultural companies with 500 employees in the area. The expected production in this typical area is estimated at 35/40,000 tonnes, divided as follows: Golden (55%), White (35%), Red (10%). The Golden one is certainly the most famous, it is used for Friggione or fried foods, the sweeter and more delicate Red one is used to flavor salads or to accompany boiled meats and cheeses, the White one, being crunchier, is used for soups, omelettes or baked in the oven. The harvest goes from June to September.

The Sweet and Sour Medicine Onion is an extremely simple dish to prepare, but at the same time with a unique taste. Small-medium sized white onions are used, recognizable by their color and intense aroma. Only a little sugar, wine vinegar and olive oil are added to obtain a perfect product for any combination.

The reputation of the Medicina onion dates back to the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century when its cultivation increasingly took hold as an open-field crop in the suitable lands of the Medicina area following the hemp growing crisis, symbolic cultivation of the Bolognese territory. Starting from the second half of the 1930s, onion cultivation took a decisive step forward, spreading and progressively concentrating in the plain lands of the province of Bologna, whose epicenter became the municipality of Medicina. Already in the 1960s, the Medicina square became the reference market for the definition of production prices for the entire province of Bologna, for other areas of the Emilia-Romagna region and neighboring regions. Almost all traders and brokers in the sector flocked to the two weekly markets, therefore, to give greater professionalism and prestige to this market, a special "Trading Room" was set up. Within this hall, two weekly markets on Thursday and Sunday, all product transactions took place and the prices were recorded by the Chamber of Commerce of Bologna. In the same years, producers in the area set up two cooperatives which represent 70% of production. The notoriety and distinction of the onion in question has roots that are lost over time. The first evidence of cultivation in this area dates back to the end of the 13th century. Subsequently, in the 16th century, Pier Crescenzi with the work "Ruralium commodorum libri duodecim"and Baldassarre Pisanelli in the precious "Treatise on the nature of food and drink" praised its characteristics in the kitchen and its medicinal properties. A decisive testimony of the traditional cultivation system is reported by Vincenzo Tanara in the famous treatise of 1664 "The economy of the citizen in villa"; in this work the experiences of the farmers of the Bolognese plain are reported, describing the agronomic techniques of the time, recalling how the sowing of this vegetable can be carried out at the end of August or in the months of February and March, a calendar still followed today. In the same period the secret chef of Pius V, the Bartolomeo Scappi from Bologna reported nine recipes based on onions in his treatise on gastronomy. Alongside its undisputed reputation, the Medicinal Onion boasts particular characteristics linked both to pedoclimatic factors and to the centuries-old experience gained by farmers in the specific area. In 2004, given the growing importance in the country's economy, the Medicinal Onion Consortium was founded.

Features

A tasty, delicate and persistent product in the mouth. The scent is intense and suitable for any type of palate. The raw materials are simple, excellent, at 0 km.

Pairings

The sweet and sour Medicinal Onion is perfect for aperitifs, appetizers, starters and side dishes for second courses. It pairs perfectly with platters of excellent cured meats, fresh and medium-aged cheeses, roasted, stewed or boiled meats.

Medicine onion, water, sugar, wine vinegar, salt, olive oil. Acidity regulator: citric acid, antioxidant: ascorbic acid. May contain traces of sulphites.