How to Store Onions So They Stay Fresh For Months
Stop your cryin’! Keep your onions fresh with some of our favorite tips on how to store them.
Sick of onions going bad before you use them all? Get our tips on how you should be storing onions so that they stay fresh for months. No more wasted onions!
When Are Vidalia Onions Available?
Vidalia onions come to maturity during shorter days than other onions. They’re grown as a winter crop with a harvest that begins in Spring and ends at the end of August. They’re therefore only available for a short time. And that short time is now! Because they’re only available for a short time, if you want to have them for awhile, and of course you do since they’re so sweet and good, then you need to store them properly to keep them dry and fresh.
So here’s what you need to do. You need to go to the grocery store and stock up on these sweet onion treats while they’re available.
Once you have your bags of onions in your house, then what do you do? No worries. I’ve got three tips for storing onions that will keep them fresh for a nice long time.
Tips For Storing Onions
These tips can be used for all kinds of onions whether you have Vidalias, yellow onions, or red onions.
Onion Storage Tip #1
One of the best places to store onions is in the refrigerator: Wrap each onion bulb individually in paper towels, which will help absorb moisture, and place them in the crisper with the vents closed. A few will naturally go bad, but many will keep for months. If you buy a big bag of Vidalia onions at the end of the season you should have them through the holidays. What a treat!
Onion Storage Tip #2
Store onions in the legs of clean, sheer pantyhose. Yes, really. This is a pretty cool trick.
What you do is tie a knot in between each onion. This keeps them separate from each other and lets air circulate around them so that they stay dry. Whenever you want to use an onion, cut above the next knot and pop one out. Hang your hose-strung onions in a cool, dry, well-ventilated area.
Onion Storage Tip #3
Don’t store onions with potatoes. It makes the onions go bad quicker.
There you are. Three great tips so that you can buy a whole whack of Vidalias now and keep enjoying them through the months ahead. Yum!
Onion Recipes
Now that you’re able to keep them from going bad, how are you going to use all those delicious onions? Try these recipes with onion.
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by the Vidalia Onion Committee. All opinions are ours and honest.
This post originally appeared in August 2016 and was revised and republished in February 2025.
Every year I put reg onions or valdalias in newpaper then into a brown paper bag and stack them into a cardboard box into my extra fridge and they keep till the next spring easily.. wonderful way to keep them..
Thank you for sharing, Gloria!
I use the pantyhose method, but instead of knotting the leg, I cut a few rounds off the top and make ties to just tie between the onions. That way I can reuse the legs.
Great idea, Janice! Thank you for sharing.
At the price of groceries these days we need all the help we can get. Thank you. I can’t wait to tell my daughter these very helpful tips.
You’re welcome, Tommy!
Thanks. Interesting. I do store them next to potatoes but won’t now
I grow candy onions and after drying them I put them in open top boxes and store them in my garage refrigerator. They usually last till March or April. The wife of the produce stand told me that she did that and they stored for a long time. This year I grew 96 onions I give some to my kids.
What a great onion harvest, Don! Thank you for sharing your experience with us.
I save string vented bags I get from the store for lemons, potatoes or onions for harvest time. Where I cut a small opening I can just take string to close and hang in a spare closet as our garage is too hot in the summer but ok in the Texas winter months.
Thanks for sharing your methods, Pat!
how long do the onion hung-strung in the panty hose last typically?
I’m not 100% sure, Ann, but my research said that if done correctly they can last up to 6 months! Make sure to separate them with knots so that if one starts going bad, it won’t spoil all of them.
I’ve seen where you wrap the each Onion individually in heavy tin foil last for months
Interesting, Tammy! Thanks for sharing.
To Ruth Borlie,
My pantry contains my washer and dryer. I have always hung my onion in that room after putting them in the legs of panty hose and tying in knots between each onion. I never had any problems with spoilage.
Thanks for your feedback, Suzanne!
I live in South Fl with year round air. Where should I hand onions in panty hose. I have a small indoor laundry room where I could store but it gets hot from dryer. I am at a lose of where to hang them.
That’s tricky for sure, Ruth. I think you might be best to store yours in the crisper drawer of your fridge. Or you could maybe hang them in a darker corner of your kitchen. Good luck!
The refrigerator is actually the worst place to store onions. Might want to re-research that bit.
Jennifer, This storage tip was taken directly from the Vidalia Onion Committee and is what they recommend.
Hi ..thanks for subject .l dry onion in sun and some keep in coldest part in Fridge.
Those hanging metal vegetable baskets are great too
I have wrapped my onions in paper towels and have had them stored in the refridgerator for about a month. They seem to be sprouting and feel a little slimy. The flavor is strong compared to when they were fresh. What is wrong?
Hmm. They might be too packed and thus condensing a lot. I’d say change the paper towels. Also, when ready to use an onion, you can remove the outer slimy layer and use the unaffected insides.
I store my onions in a pair of old panty hose. You place them in the legs tie each onion off leaving area between
For air to circulate. Hang on a hook in a dark cool area.
It works..
Babette, That is actually Tip #2 in our article. It’s amazing how well it works, isn’t it?
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