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Home » Method » Drying & Storing
5 from 2 reviews

How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose

5 minutes
onion
By: Pamela Reed
Posted:8/3/19
Updated:11/14/23
Jump to Recipe

How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose.  This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months. Follow these step by step instructions!

How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose.  This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months. Follow these step by step instructions!

Pantyhose is a funny word.  Does anyone still use the word?  I usually call them tights or stockings.   But I decided to go brave and use the word pantyhose in the title.  

Pantyhose is great for making your legs look good.   They’re also great for storing onions.  Who knew, right?  In my search for the perfect way to store onions many recommendations are often given for mesh bags.   I never have mesh bags though and I don’t want to buy any, so I got to thinking…. mesh makes things breathe easier, but what else does?   Pantyhose!

How to Store Onions

How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose.  This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months. Follow these step by step instructions!

Pantyhose is usually made of nylon making your legs able to breathe through them.  Substitute your legs with onions and now you got some onions that can breathe too!

So let’s get to how to store your onions, alright?

We grow a bunch of onions with 2 harvesting dates through the year, once in the Spring/Summer for our onion sets and once in the late Fall.    Recently we picked our onions for the Season and wanted to store them to last as long they can possibly can.

How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose.  This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months. Follow these step by step instructions!

How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose

  1. First, pick your onions and let them dry.  We separate them so they aren’t touching and let them dry on the roof for a few days.  If you let them dry outside, make sure you check the weather so that it will not rain.  Moisture is your worst enemy when drying and storing onions so the point is to dry them.
    How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose.  This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months. Follow these step by step instructions!
  2. After they have dried in the sun for a few days, use your hand to gently brush off any dirt on them.  This will help make sure nothing is left on them that will make them spoil.  Now, bring them indoors.
    How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose. This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months.
  3. Next you want to cut the stem to about 1 inch for each onion.
    How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose. This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months.
  4. Now grab your pair of pantyhose and cut them apart so you have both legs separately.   Now you want to start dropping the onions into them.  
    How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose. This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months.
  5. It’s best if you tie each large onion apart so no onions are touching each other. This will prevent them from spoiling one another if one goes bad.  It also will allow you to take one onion out a time, as you will cut one out.  
    You can see in this picture how we tied them to separate them.
    How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose. This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months.
    For smaller onions, we put them together as we know we’ll be using a bunch at once.
    How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose. This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months.
  6. Now store them in a cool, dry, dark place. 
How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose. This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months.

You can cut your pantyhose as much as you want to give you as much onion storage as possible.  This is only using one pair of pantyhose but we cut them up into 3 pieces.

And there you have it, a easy and great way to store your onions to last you for months!

Tip: Have lots of onions? Try making onion powder by baking them in the oven!

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How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose.  This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months. Follow these step by step instructions!
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5 from 2 reviews

How to Store Onions

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How To Store Onions Using Pantyhose.  This is a great and cheap way to store onions to make them last for months. Follow these step by step instructions!
By: Pamela Reed
Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes
Total Time 5 minutes minutes

Ingredients

  • onions
  • pantyhose

Instructions

  • First, pick your onions and let them dry.  We separate them so they aren’t touching and let them dry on the roof for a few days.  If you let them dry outside, make sure you check the weather so that it will not rain.  
    Moisture is your worst enemy when drying and storing onions so the point is to dry them.
  • After they have dried in the sun for a few days, use your hand to gently brush off any dirt on them. This will help make sure nothing is left on them that will make them spoil. Now, bring them indoors.  
  • Next you want to cut the stem to about 1 inch for each onion.
  • Now grab your pair of pantyhose and cut them apart so you have both legs separately. Now you want to store dropping the onions into them.  It’s best if you tie each large onion apart so no onions are touching each other. This will prevent them from spoiling one another if one goes bad. It also will allow you to take one onion out a time, as you will cut one out.   
  • And there you have it, a easy and great way to store your onions to last you for months!
Keyword: how to store onions
Fall, Summer
Did you make this?I love seeing what you’ve made! Tag me on Instagram at @BrooklynFarmGirl and don’t forget to leave a comment & rating below.

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  1. Wesley Bielinski says

    January 30, 2023 at 7:16 pm

    If you would use a binder clip instead of tying them you could reuse the pantyhose, less plastic waste.

    Reply
  2. Linda Turner says

    January 30, 2023 at 9:17 am

    I just joined.

    Reply
  3. Allie says

    June 25, 2022 at 9:42 am

    Trying to implement this wonderful hack but wondering how you actually hang the stockings and keep them from ripping from the weight of the onions. Would appreciate any advice!

    Reply
  4. Rosalie says

    May 30, 2020 at 12:43 am

    Couldn’t you just tie a bundle of onions together by the dried tops and hang them in a corner. Or if using a pantyhose, use potato chip clamps that snap shut on one end, between each set of onions you are separating so you can not damage the pantyhose so you can reuse them next year. That is the frugal nut inside of me sneaking out. Love your ideas.

    Reply
  5. Rick Ruehmann says

    August 4, 2018 at 7:09 am

    You can also buy onion sleeves from Dixoondale Farms. They are $1.50 each for a 15 ft. or so sleeve. I use small plastic zip ties between each onion. When you need an onion, simply cut the bottom zip ties & remove the onion. Save the empty sleeves & use them over for the next year. My Candy onions will usually last in these sleeves hung in my basement from July to March or April.

    Reply
    • Pamela says

      August 4, 2018 at 7:58 pm

      Thanks for the comment Rick, those are great ideas!

      Reply
  6. Ruth D says

    July 31, 2018 at 9:01 pm

    Lucky me, I no longer have to wear pantyhose for work…. so they are going to my Vidalias!

    Reply
    • Pamela says

      August 1, 2018 at 10:33 am

      Hahaha, I love it!

      Reply
  7. Gretchen @ Two Healthy Kitchens says

    August 12, 2014 at 9:34 pm

    1) No, I don’t call them pantyhose. Tights. Leggins. Not pantyhose. I feel gross even typing it!
    2) I am so happy to have found this tip! I constantly throw onions away because I buy them but don’t store them properly. Now I know! Yay!! No more yucky onions!!!!

    Reply
  8. PassTheKnife says

    August 8, 2014 at 2:19 pm

    This is too funny, and a great idea!!

    Reply
  9. Anna Johnston says

    August 7, 2014 at 9:49 pm

    Pantyhose … LOL! Makes me giggle everytime. I cant use the word with any seriousness at all, so stick with stockings and leggings. This is a really great idea Pamela, I have a bunch of them I dont enjoy wearing, reckon this is the perfect use for them. Plus, I think they look really cool too, an onion feature. 🙂

    Reply
  10. Jamie | Jamie's Recipes says

    August 6, 2014 at 9:23 pm

    Love this!

    Am I too late to do Fall onions?

    Reply
    • Pamela says

      August 6, 2014 at 11:29 pm

      Hey Jamie, you could always plant over the Winter and then just pick them in the late Spring. To do this you’ll need to protect with a greenhouse or cover them with mulch to lock in warmness. Last year we had pretty good success growing them over Winter and we had a harsh few months!

      Reply
      • Jamie | Jamie's Recipes says

        August 11, 2014 at 10:27 am

        Thanks Pamela!

        Reply
  11. Nancy/SpicieFoodie says

    August 6, 2014 at 1:08 am

    This is such a brilliant idea and article — thanks so much for sharing. The kitty’s are too cute!:)

    Reply
  12. Koko says

    August 4, 2014 at 11:10 pm

    This is such a hilarious, but good idea!! So smart!!

    Reply
  13. Suzanne says

    August 4, 2014 at 8:53 pm

    Great idea Pamela, hate to wear pantyhose have a bunch of unused pairs now I have a use for them. Very cool.

    Reply
  14. Mary Frances says

    August 4, 2014 at 5:29 pm

    Pantyhose for storing onions??? Who knew?

    Reply
  15. cheri says

    August 4, 2014 at 3:57 pm

    Brilliant idea Pamela! great post.

    Reply
  16. Sam @ SugarspunRun says

    August 4, 2014 at 2:05 pm

    What a neat idea! Thanks for sharing! 🙂

    Reply
  17. Donalyn@TheCreeksideCook says

    August 4, 2014 at 1:21 pm

    “Substitute your legs with onions” – cracked me up!

    We grow a lot of onions, and I never wear any sort of hose, so we have to make do with saved onion bags from those months we do have to buy them. This is a great idea to keep them separated though, because they do go bad much more quickly if they are touching another bad one. Easily led astray I guess…

    Reply
  18. Shashi @ runninsrilankan says

    August 4, 2014 at 12:39 pm

    Pamela – you are a genius – I would never have thunk to use pantyhose to store onions!

    Reply
  19. Cecile @ My Yellow Farmhouse says

    August 4, 2014 at 11:18 am

    We used to grow onions and garlic when we had our farm – I wish I’d had this idea then!! I’m still going to use it with my store-bought onions… hopefully this will eliminate finding any ‘squishy’ ones! (Just thought of something… Up on the Roof you don’t have to worry about those damn woodchucks!)

    Reply
  20. Kristi @ Inspiration Kitchen says

    August 4, 2014 at 10:22 am

    Great post, and I loved the title! It definitely got my attention! 🙂

    Reply
  21. Christine at Cook the Story says

    August 4, 2014 at 9:58 am

    Awesome idea!

    Reply
  22. Marta @ What should I eat for breakfast today says

    August 4, 2014 at 4:51 am

    Awesome idea!

    Reply
  23. Angie@Angie's Recipes says

    August 4, 2014 at 4:39 am

    That’s a very helpful tip, Pamela.

    Reply
  24. Ashley @ Wishes and Dishes says

    August 4, 2014 at 12:37 am

    This is so amazing!! I have to say – the title definitely had me intrigued LOL

    Reply
  25. Liz says

    August 3, 2014 at 9:43 pm

    This is such a terrific tip! I need to keep a closer eye on my onions as there always seems to be one escaping my vision that starts to spoil! Thanks!

    Reply
  26. Kayle (The Cooking Actress) says

    August 3, 2014 at 9:24 pm

    SO GENIUS!

    Reply
  27. sue/the view from great island says

    August 3, 2014 at 6:22 pm

    What a great kitchen hack (that’s a funny word, to!) I adore onions, and this seems like a very sensible solution for storing them, thanks. They kind of look like modern art sculptures hanging there, too!

    Reply
  28. Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice says

    August 3, 2014 at 6:22 pm

    What a great post, Pamela! I had no idea that you could store onions using pantyhose. I’m definitely going to have to remember this for the future!

    Reply
  29. Katie says

    August 3, 2014 at 5:45 pm

    Great idea!

    Although I HATE pantyhose themselves with a passion and the word as well. I may make an exception and buy them, if my onions are successful.

    Reply

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