Dr. West’s Medicine Show and Jug Band had their biggest hit with 1967’s “The Eggplant that Ate Chicago”, describing a mutated alien vegetable that put civilization at risk (1). Norman Greenbaum, who wrote and sang the song, would later do the 1970 classic, “Spirit in the Sky”, a staple of boomer funerals everywhere (2). When I spotted some monster alliums at the farmer’s market this morning, I wondered if Mr. Greenbaum’s eggplant had come back as a different species. As I am very fond of shallots, I bought a couple bunches and took them home. So far, they’ve sit quietly on the kitchen counter, and I intend to have the upper hand with them later.
I’m a latecomer to the love of shallots, but my has that romance been soaring. I’ve always been fond of onions and garlic, of course, especially the latter. The guys with their green shoots still on – scallions (green onions) and leeks – I’d use now and then, leeks being especially nice in soups and stews. But I’ll take that little shallot bulb over everyone else in the lilly (allium) family. In imbibes anything it’s in with a delicate but rich flavor that’s reminiscent of onion but without the pungency and a little sweet. And unlike onion and garlic, it’s polite. You don’t cry when you peel them or reek when you eat them.
These days, whenever a recipe calls for onion, I’ll substitute a little diced shallot. A decent sized shallot (not like the ones at the farmers’ market!) will make about a quarter cup. With small onion = 1C, medium onion = 2C, and large onion=3C, a couple shallots will supplant half a small onion. I only have one recipe here featuring shallots, which I’ll leave you in the end. Kim has some dandies (3).
My favorite restaurant in Ann Arbor, the much-missed Lord Fox, where Henry Ford and his henchman Harry Bennett used to ride their horses for Sunday supper, once had a special soup on the menu “Five Lilly Soup” (4). Betty, the proprietress, told us a little about it, including the close relationship of the five main ingredients – onion, garlic, scallions, leeks, and shallots – all in the lilly (allium) family. Garlic (allium sativa), had the most notorious non-lilly relative, that ever popular five-leaved fellow with the same last name. Besides the fact they both stink, the two plants have quite a few chemicals in common (5). I worked to make my own recipe, and think I ended up with something pretty close.
It’s entirely possible that some of the monsters I brought home will end up in a new pot of this soon. While you can get all 5 lillies in the grocery store all year round, they’re all available fresh, grown locally, right now. No better time to make that soup. And the stuff in it is so good for you, it might as well be medicine (6).
References
1. Dr. West’s Medicine Show & Junk Band – The Eggplant That Ate Chicago. YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfZ1ZHDAq08
2. Norman Greenbaum – Spirit In The Sky (1970). YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRFo72wuU6w
3. Kim. 30 Shallot Recipes to Enjoy All Day Long. InsanelyGoodRecipes.com 5/22/22. https://insanelygoodrecipes.com/shallot-recipes/
4. Ike B. Here’s to shallots 3/20/22. https://theviewfromharbal.com/2022/03/20/heres-to-shallots/
5. Puiu T. Skunk marijuana has chemical compounds similar to garlic, which explains the similar odor. ZME Science 11/17/21 https://www.zmescience.com/science/news-science/skunk-marijuana- garlic-17112021/
6. Wan Q, Li N, Du L, Zhao R, Yi M, Xu Q, Zhou Y. Allium vegetable consumption and health: An umbrella review of meta-analyses of multiple health outcomes. Food Sci Nutr. 2019 Jul 10;7(8):2451-2470. doi: 10.1002/fsn3.1117. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6694434/
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