Coll de Nargó Onion

Cebolla Coll de Nargó

This variety of onion comes from the town of Coll di Nargó, a town in the comarca (district) of Alt Urgell. and has been grown by farmers for more than a century. Due to its pleasant taste and its successful cultivation in mountainous areas, it is one of the most important and typical vegetables in the municipality. From Coll di Nargó, it has spread to the Segre area and the regions of Solsonès Pallars Jussa and Noguera through seedlings produced and sold by local farmers. Many of the residents in Coll de Nargó keep their harvest for personal consumption and sell small quantities of bulbs. Coll de Nargó onions are eaten from mid-summer until full winter. In spring, the citizens of nearby villages and visitors coming to Coll de Nargó used to stop to buy new seedlings. The onions are grown according to the traditional method: directly sown in planting tables that can be found in most gardens in the municipality. The Coll de Nargó onion has a sweet and crunchy taste with a fibrous and crunchy texture. It has an elliptical shape and tapered ends. When cooked, the onions release a strong and very pleasant aroma, perfect for many dishes. Although the onions can be eaten raw in salads when ripe, after briefly being soaked in water, they are mainly eaten when cooked. They can be lightly fried as a basis for several recipes such as stews and tortillas or to make wonderful confits. The best-known recipe in the area is browned onion – a confit with olive oil and vinegar served with grilled potatoes. In Coll de Nargó it is sown around September and planted at the end of winter (end of March, beginning of April). In the Plana de Lleida area, it can be sown at the beginning of February and the seedlings can be planted at the beginning of March. The onions are harvested during the full moon in July and left to dry in the sun for three days so that they lose some water and can be better preserved.