This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Learn how to cut green onions, often labeled as scallions. You will find these slender stalks of flavor minced raw in salads, salsas, and Lebanese dishes like tabbouleh. They are also often the onion of choice in cooked dishes like Asian dumplings and stir-fries.
Tiny but nutritionally dense, green onions contain vitamin K for healthy bones and blot clotting: vitamin C, which protects cells; folate for healthy red blood cells, plus a bunch of phytonutrients which have cancer-fighting properties. It is also what gives you onion breath.
How to wash green onions
Place green onions in a colander and rinse under cold running water, swishing them around so all parts get clean.
Pat dry with paper towels or kitchen towel.
How to cut green onions
Stack 2 -3 green onions. Start at the green end. While keeping your fingers curled with the tips holding the green stalks, run your knife in an up and down rocking motions across the green onions.
In between each slice, move your fingers and knife down the onion toward the bulb end. Repeat until you are at the end.
Reserve the white part for a later use. (Or vice versa if your recipe calls for the white part!)
How to store green onions
For chopped green onions
To get your cut green onions to last longer, place them in a paper towel and run water through them until the water runs clear. Squeeze the excess water out of the onions and place them on a dry paper towel. Squeeze again to remove as much moisture as possible. Let air dry for 10-15 minutes.
You can then store them in an airtight container with a dry paper towel underneath to absorb any excess moisture.
For whole green onions
For whole green onions that have not been chopped, try one of these two storage methods:
- Storage Method 1: Place like a bunch of flowers in a glass jar covered by a plastic or silicon bag. You can trim the bottom of the sticks and be sure to change out the water every 3-5 days.
- Storage Method 2: Roll the green onions in a clean, damp (not wet!) paper towel, then roll the whole bundle into a plastic or silicon bag.
Recipes with green onions
- Red Curry Noodle Soup
- Easy White Chicken Chili
- Lebanese Crushed Lentil Soup
- Shrimp Fajita Bowls
- Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry
- Asian Chicken Salad
- Chicken Lettuce Cups
- Cauliflower Tabbouleh Salad
- Mediterranean Frittata
- Honey Walnut Shrimp
- Avocado Chicken Salad
- Vegan Macaroni Salad
- Panko Crusted Salmon with Asparagus
- Unstuffed Peppers
- Avocado Egg Salad
Frequently asked questions
Place the whites, root side down, in a glass of water and watch them grow! They can also be planted outdoors. You can also chop them up up until the roots and use as you would regular white onions.
While scallions and green onions are interchangeable in recipes, as a plant, a true scallion will never grow into a full-blown onion and a green onion has that potential. True scallions will have a flat bulb and a mild taste. Of the three, Spring onions possess the most pronounced bulb at the end.
They are good for about five days.
To get your cut green onions to last longer, place them in a paper towel and run water through it until the water runs clear. Squeeze the excess water out of the onions and place
For more cutting skills tutorials:
- How to Cut a Tomato
- How to Cut Acorn Squash
- How to Cut an Onion
- How to Cut a Bell Pepper
- How to Cut an Avocado
- How to Cut a Head of Lettuce
- How to Cut Cauliflower into Florets
- How to Cut a Kiwi
- How to Cut a Peach
- How to Cut Basil
If you’ve found this cooking resource for How to Cut Green Onions helpful or if you’ve tried any recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience with this technique. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!
preorder MY book
The Feel Good Foodie Cookbook is now available everywhere books are sold!
Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers BookshopSCHULER Books (SIGNED)
How to Cut Green Onions
Ingredients
- 1 bunch green onions rinsed and dried
Instructions
- Stack 2-3 green onions, starting at the green end, keep your fingers curled with the tips holding the green onions, run your knife in an up and down rocking motion across the green onion, in between each slice move your fingers and knife down the onion and repeat until you are at the white end.
- Reserve the white for a later use.
- Place the sliced green onions in a paper towel and rinse under cool water
- Transfer them to a dry paper towel and store in the fridge in a lidded container.
Notes
- Storage Method 1: Place like a bunch of flowers in a glass jar covered by a plastic or silicon bag. You can trim the bottom of the sticks and be sure to change out the water every 3-5 days.
- Storage Method 2: Roll the green onions in a clean, damp (not wet!) paper towel, then roll the whole bundle into a plastic or silicon bag.
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
