Vegetable
Allium cepa
A tier
Allium cepa is the bulb onion species that supplies yellow, red, white, sweet, and small specialty types worldwide. Concentric fleshy scales store sugars and sulfur compounds that become sweet when cooked and pungent when raw; day-length sensitivity sorts cultivars into short-, intermediate-, and long-day classes. The species is a foundational aromatic in virtually every savoury cuisine. Sweat gently as a flavour base, caramelise for depth, roast whole, or pickle raw rings. Different skin colours and pungency levels suit raw versus cooked roles. Store cured bulbs cool and dry; green tops and fresh spring onions are separate market forms of the same species complex.
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History
Central Asian domestication produced Allium cepa as a staple bulb vegetable.
Onion cultivation spread through Egypt, the Mediterranean, and Asia as a daily aromatic.
Global trade and colonial agriculture made A. cepa ubiquitous in world cuisines.
Modern breeding refined storage, sweetness, and day-length classes for industrial supply.