pearl onion

noun

1. a small white onion, often pickled and used as an appetizer or garnish.

Word History and Origins

Origin of pearl onion¹

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

I think Raymond Chandler’s The Long Goodbye has a line like, “I belonged there like a pearl onion on a banana split.”

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The resulting mix, which also included ginger syrup, a dash of salt and verjus, a sort-of vinegar made from unripe grapes, was garnished with a pearl onion.

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The only supplemental charge on the menu is foie gras terrine, served as a slender bar with a thin overlay of cherry gel and strategically placed dots of sauce and garnishes, the best of which are pickled pearl onion petals and cherries.

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Food critic Tom Sietsema's first impressions: “From 'Light Beginning,' one of four menu categories, I opt for a summer salad that yields a wreath of colorful herbs and vegetables — cornets of summer squash, ribbons of carrot, miniature eggplant — interspersed with tufts of whipped goat cheese. 'Indulgence,' my second plate, is just that, panko-crusted, soft-centered sweetbreads encircled in lightly charred petals of pearl onion, each holding a drop of Madeira jus.”

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“Indulgence,” my second plate, is just that, panko-crusted, soft-centered sweetbreads encircled in lightly charred petals of pearl onion, each holding a drop of Madeira jus.

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