KEY'S IN PINK
A new pink onion – a UK first - is being launched by Lincolnshire grower EM Key & Son. This new specialist variety, known as Rosanna, has a delicate pink-coloured outer skin and beautiful pink flesh and is exclusive to Key’s of Lincolnshire.
It was developed by a local breeder to meet consumer demand for speciality varieties of vegetables and will be seen for the first time at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair. Its sweet, mild flavour makes it perfect for eating raw in salads, pickling or using whole in casseroles and its unusual pink tones add colour to a dish. And because they can be eaten raw, you can benefit from the heart disease-preventing sulphur compounds in the onion. “I am always on the lookout for different varieties of vegetables to grow”, explains Fraser Key. “Consumers seem to have an insatiable appetite for new products to try, so when I heard about this new variety of onion I immediately snapped it up.”
Barny Houghton, Chef Patron of Bristol restaurants Bordeaux Quay and Quartier Vert recently tried the onions and said: “I really love these onions. They have a wonderful sweetness to them and good acidity. We’re roasting them whole to get the best of that effect.”
A new pink onion – a UK first - is being launched by Lincolnshire grower EM Key & Son. This new specialist variety, known as Rosanna, has a delicate pink-coloured outer skin and beautiful pink flesh and is exclusive to Key’s of Lincolnshire.
It was developed by a local breeder to meet consumer demand for speciality varieties of vegetables and will be seen for the first time at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair. Its sweet, mild flavour makes it perfect for eating raw in salads, pickling or using whole in casseroles and its unusual pink tones add colour to a dish. And because they can be eaten raw, you can benefit from the heart disease-preventing sulphur compounds in the onion. “I am always on the lookout for different varieties of vegetables to grow”, explains Fraser Key. “Consumers seem to have an insatiable appetite for new products to try, so when I heard about this new variety of onion I immediately snapped it up.”
Barny Houghton, Chef Patron of Bristol restaurants Bordeaux Quay and Quartier Vert recently tried the onions and said: “I really love these onions. They have a wonderful sweetness to them and good acidity. We’re roasting them whole to get the best of that effect.”
Key’s is among a handful of farms in the country growing specialist vegetables such as butternut and mixed squash, shallots and garlic. The family take caring for the environment seriously. Wherever possible they limit artificial interventions and actively plant natural habitats around the farm to encourage wildlife and beneficial insects to act as natural insecticides.
The growing season runs from March until September and the onions will be available to the retail and catering trade.
For more information on pink onions and other products in the Key’s of Lincolnshire range, please contact Fraser Key on 01529 460230.
The growing season runs from March until September and the onions will be available to the retail and catering trade.
For more information on pink onions and other products in the Key’s of Lincolnshire range, please contact Fraser Key on 01529 460230.
