Bugs in my onions!

maze

Wed, Jan 26 2011, 7:17 pm

I was peeling and slicing onions, when I noticed these tiny black dots the width of a pencil mark underneath the orange skin on the the white part of the onion. I wasn't sure if it was dirt, when all of a sudden one started moving. It happened on more than 3 onions, and I ended up throwing out a 10 lb bag of onions because it was disgusting. Anyone ever find tiny bugs in onions?? I've never had this problem before. I'm thinking about refrigerating all future onions. Would that help? Do you have any suggestions to prevent this in the future? Also halachically, is there a problem if a certain number of onions from the same bag have bugs. Do you have to throw out everything?

granolamom

Wed, Jan 26 2011, 7:20 pm

yes, that's happened to me, its gross, isnt it?
I also threw out the whole bag. I refrigerate my onions now, and also no longer buy onions from a certain store, there are oftentimes small flies around their onions and potatoes.

imabima

Wed, Jan 26 2011, 7:22 pm

I've never heard of an infestation in onions, but as far as I know, you just have to take the bugs off and you can use the rest of the onion. It sounded like the insects were near the outside, so juts peel in a couple of layers and peek around. No bugs, no problem.

SingALong

Wed, Jan 26 2011, 7:55 pm

I've heard of bugs in onions but never saw them. I do keep my onions in the fridge and peel the outer 2-3 layers just in case

maofboys

Thu, Jan 27 2011, 1:21 am

SorGold wrote:

Yes it can be a problem and I know people who check their onions for bugs.

you are supposed to check everything for bugs in general. people could have bugs in the pantry that can get into breadcrumbs, or bugs on the store that can get into boxes and fruit and veg.ies. I never saw any in onions but I am not surprised. I have found bugs in cauliflower and broccoli.

pina colada

Thu, Jan 27 2011, 1:25 am

you are supposed to check onions for bugs, they're called thrips. from what I've learned, you peel the outer layer and slice off the top, until where the layers are tight packed tightly. I can't say I'm perfect with following all the steps but I do give a look to see if I see any bugs.

happyone

Thu, Jan 27 2011, 7:26 am

Onions are often infested and you need to know what to look for. I was told to first slice an onion in half and if the center is clean I use it.

sky

Thu, Jan 27 2011, 10:45 am

I check my onions. Take off the outer layer and just check for bugs. I was told if I see anything to rinse.
Cut off the top and bottom of onion and discard.
If the middle of the onion isn't tightly packed I cut it in half and check the middle.

tikva18

Wed, Feb 02 2011, 1:15 am

There are bugs in onions - I've been noticing them for a few years now. I think that when the produce sits around longer then it's more apt to have the problem. Simply wash the bugs away and use it. Such a shame to throw them out due to bugs.

grin

Wed, Feb 02 2011, 8:39 am

yes, it's more of a problem if the onions have been sitting for a long time or have sprouted. I myself only check when they've sprouted, but I think that getting rid of the outer layer isn't enough since they can burrow where they can hide best. I was told that if it has sprouted, then I must dissect the entire onion, opening up in between each layer to check for those tiny bugs.

of course, you shouldn't throw out an entire bag of onions, but I can see that this would be much too tedious to do in that case.

reed

Wed, Feb 02 2011, 9:53 am

I recently heard from a mashgiach that they were finding infestation sporadically in all types of onions. They believe that the common denominator is the fact that all the infested onions had some sort of opening - either a break, cut, or decay. If you find any such sort of "entry", you should check the whole onion. The easiest way to do this is to cut the onion in half lengthwise. Then you can easily separate the layers just enough to see if there's anything inside. (You don't necessarily have to take apart the layers completely, so you can still slice or chop a solid piece of onion.)

I'm now more careful about onions being whole and relatively clean when I buy them. Haven't seen any real problems with fresh, clean, solid onions.

tikva18

Wed, Feb 02 2011, 10:43 am

Kind of funny, but when I told my dh about it - he hadn't seen any himself, he then told the CRC on my behalf - but they hadn't heard about it either (this was a few years ago). However, the produce at the caterer where my dh does the hashgocha only brings in the freshest produce. Shortly after we notified the CRC they put out a notice about it.

grin

Wed, Feb 02 2011, 10:44 am

reed wrote:

If you find any such sort of "entry", you should check the whole onion. The easiest way to do this is to cut the onion in half lengthwise. Then you can easily separate the layers just enough to see if there's anything inside. (You don't necessarily have to take apart the layers completely, so you can still slice or chop a solid piece of onion.)

that's interesting - I was told (by a friend) that since they're so tiny and hide so well, that you have to dismantle the whole onion. I'll have to ask my LOR - thanks!