White Onion vs. Yellow Onion: Uses for White and Yellow Onions

White onions are vegetables belonging to the allium family. These bulb-shaped vegetables feature white papery skin and have a mellow, sweet flavor. White onions have a high water content, making their flesh crisp. White onions are typically the best kind of onion for sandwiches and salads.

You can consume white onions raw or cook them into dishes. Consider the following ways to use raw and cooked onions:

• Garnish: You can consume white onions raw—their high water content makes their white flesh particularly crispy. Dice white onions to serve raw in salsas and guacamole or to garnish tacos and other Mexican dishes. You can also layer raw white onion slices on burgers.
• Pickle: You can also pickle white onions, and they’re particularly popular in vinaigrettes.
• Cook: You can use white onions to flavor soups, stews, sauces, and stir-fry dishes. White onions are also suitable for frying onion rings.

Yellow onions, also known as brown onions in some countries, are your go-to cooking onions. This onion has yellow skin and a strong flavor due to its high sulfur content, which mellows out during cooking, becoming sweet and flavorful. Yellow onions are very common and make up ninety percent of all storage onions grown in the US. Spanish onions are a type of yellow onion, which are slightly sweeter than yellow onions when raw.

Yellow onions are versatile onions you can use in many recipes. Home cooks generally cook yellow onions because of their strong flavor. Yellow onions have high sugar content, making them perfect for caramelizing. You can add caramelized onions to French onion soup or a frittata. You can also cook yellow onions in a stew or sauté them in olive oil to add into a stir-fry dish. These onions can withstand a long cook time without disintegrating because of their high starch content.

If a recipe calls for cooked onions, you can substitute white onions for yellow onions and vice versa. When it comes to raw onions, avoid using yellow onions instead of white onions because of the pungent flavor of yellow onions; white onions have a mild flavor. If you need a substitute for raw white onion, use shallots, red onion, or sweet onion—sweet onion varieties include Walla Walla from Washington, Maui from Hawaii, or Vidalia onions from Georgia.

Become a better chef with the MasterClass Annual Membership. Gain access to exclusive video lessons taught by the world’s best, including Mashama Bailey, Gabriela Cámara, Niki Nakayama, Chef Thomas Keller, Yotam Ottolenghi, Dominique Ansel, Gordon Ramsay, Alice Waters, and more.