Weve been cooking long enough to know when we can swap out certain ingredients in our go-to recipes for others that will be just as tasty. But one ingredient pair that always trips us up is scallions vs. green onions. Are they the same thing, just known by two different names? Are they two different plants but can be used interchangeably? We set out to get the food facts for you. Much like jam vs. jelly, sorbet vs. sherbet, gelato vs. ice cream or soup vs. stew, were getting to the bottom of the scallions vs. green onions debate. Heres everything you need to know about what they are, when to use them and how they compare to similar vegetables—answering questions like “Are chives green onions?” and more.
Weve been cooking long enough to know when we can swap out certain ingredients in our go-to recipes for others that will be just as tasty. But one ingredient pair that always trips us up is scallions vs. green onions. Are they the same thing, just known by two different names? Are they two different plants but can be used interchangeably? We set out to get the food facts for you. Much like jam vs. jelly, sorbet vs. sherbet, gelato vs. ice cream or soup vs. stew, were getting to the bottom of the scallions vs. green onions debate. Heres everything you need to know about what they are, when to use them and how they compare to similar vegetables—answering questions like “Are chives green onions?” and more.
Scallion is one of the best garnish for food, for its flavor, but also for aesthetics. It tops foods like ramen, fried rice, and they make great pancakes. If you saw this picture above and immediately thought “thats green onion”, youre correct; scallions and green onion are literally the same thing. Whether you call it scallion or green onion, its a part of the onion species. Though it has a milder taste than your regular white or yellow onion. Scallions have a pepper-y bite, somewhat-spicy, sharp flavor. I love scallions, but never by itself because I cant handle that strong flavor, but some might. Ive only had it in salads and as a garnish, but a little goes a long way because of its strong flavor (unless youre cooking it, then you could add more). You can even add it in soups, or grill it. Summer is the best season to have scallions, actually, because its their peak season.
Leeks are in the same onion species as scallions, but they have a different taste and size. Theyre bigger than scallions, and they also have a mild onion-like flavor. It also has a slightly garlicky flavor, but when you cook it, that garlicky flavor mellows out. Leeks are never usually the main star of a dish, but theres so many ways you can prepare this vegetable so it shines bright in the dish. Just remember, if you replace leek with scallion in a recipe, it probably wont turn out as good because as youve just read, theyre dont really taste the same. However, dont go buying leeks now because they might be expensive. Instead, buy them when theyre in season, aka in October.
My parents have been telling me to “eat my greens/vegetables”, and I did, but a lot of those greens look so similar that I can never tell them apart. I would eat them anyway because they were delicious (at least when you put some spice on it). Theres so many vegetables out there that we get confused between. The term “vegetables” is such a broad category, and within that category, theres so many different kinds of vegetables and some of them are surprisingly related/ in the same species. For example, did you know there was an onion species? We all know theres white, yellow, and red onion, but actually scallions and leeks are in this group too. For vegetables that are in the same species, it would make it harder for us to differentiate between them, especially scallions and leeks because they almost have a similar taste and appearance, just like how its so hard to tell the difference between cilantro versus parsley because they look alike. Scallions and leeks are easy to get confused because they both have green stalks with white bulbs on the bottom, but Im here to clear up the confusion and point out the clear differences between the two green vegetables.