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Red Onion

Red onion is a crisp, mildly pungent onion used raw, pickled, or cooked in salads, salsas, and savory dishes.

Red Onion — illustrative ingredient image

About Red Onion

Red onion is an onion with purple-red outer skins and similarly coloured layers, though the interior may become paler toward the centre. It is commonly sliced into salads, salsas, sandwiches, and garnishes, and is also added to cooked savoury dishes. Bulb size, colour intensity, and pungency vary by variety and growing conditions.

The bulbs are usually crisp and juicy when raw, with a sharp, pungent flavour that can seem sweeter or milder than some other onions. Raw pieces remain crunchy, while heat softens the layers and develops a sweeter, rounder onion flavour.

The edible bulb is sold whole or pre-cut. It may be eaten raw, pickled, grilled, roasted, or sautéed. Pickling changes the raw bulb’s texture and flavour, while cooking makes the layers softer and the taste more rounded; preparation and draining affect the final product.

Ingredient type
whole food

Forms & related ingredients

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Where red onion appears

8 linked foods

Find foods to recognise by country and type. Recipes and products vary; these are recorded ingredient connections.

Showing 1–8 of 8

Main dishes

Sides

Salads

Sauces

Street food

Ingredient connections awaiting review · Coverage is still growing, including packaged snacks.

Name examples awaiting language review. Confirm the specific food or product.

Local names for red onion

Names and romanised forms to recognise on menus and labels.

English

red onion

English

Onions, red, raw

Search alias · Not a confirmed translation

Available names only. Languages may be spoken in other countries; a name alone does not identify every ingredient in a dish.

Red Onion nutrition & diet

Red Onion nutritional value

Onion, mature, red skinned, raw

Per 100 g of the edible portion in the stated food form.

Calories
27.7kcal
Protein
0.8g
Carbs
5.5g
Fat
0.0g

Reference values apply to the named food form, not every preparation, variety or brand. © Food Standards Australia New Zealand. AFCD Release 3, food F009800. Available carbohydrate excludes sugar alcohols; energy converted from kJ to kcal (÷4.184). Australian data may not be appropriate for use in other countries. There are limitations associated with food composition databases. Food composition data used in the database or databases may represent an average of the nutrient content of a particular sample of foods and ingredients, determined at a particular time. The nutrient composition of foods and ingredients can vary substantially between batches and brands because of a number of factors, including changes in season, processing practices and ingredient source, and methods of calculation. Data licensed under the FSANZ Data User Licence Agreement, based on CC BY-SA 3.0 AU: https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/science-data/monitoringnutrients/afcd/datauserlicenceagreement.

Portions & preparation

Use the edible bulb after removing the dry outer skin, root end, and any damaged layers. Raw, cooked, pickled, caramelized, and fried forms require separate reference matches because water loss and added vinegar, oil, sugar, or salt change the portion and preparation.

Compare the right form: Match references to edible red onion bulb, specifying raw, cooked, pickled, dried, or fried form and any retained preparation liquid.

Diet considerations

Red onion is a plant food. Plain raw or cooked onion differs from pickled, fried, battered, or sauce-based preparations. Oil, sugar, salt, dairy, or animal-derived seasoning can change compatibility; breading and other coatings may introduce cereal ingredients, while portion and accompanying foods shape carbohydrate patterns.

AI-authored reading notes · Awaiting editorial review. Measured values, where available, have a separate source above.

Dietary compatibility

  • Vegan
    Typically compatible
  • Vegetarian
    Typically compatible
  • Pescatarian
    Typically compatible
  • Keto
    Depends on the version
  • Paleo
    Typically compatible
  • Low-carb
    Depends on the version
  • Halal
    Not established
  • Kosher
    Not established
What these diet assessments mean
Vegan · Typically compatible
The plain ingredient profile is plant, fungal or mineral based. Added ingredients in a prepared product need a separate check.
Vegetarian · Typically compatible
The plain ingredient profile is plant, fungal or mineral based. Added ingredients in a prepared product need a separate check.
Pescatarian · Typically compatible
The plain ingredient profile is plant, fungal or mineral based. Added ingredients in a prepared product need a separate check.
Keto · Depends on the version
Compatibility depends on the portion and preparation. A sourced carbohydrate amount for a defined serving is not available.
Paleo · Typically compatible
The plain form fits the conventional paleo food groups. Added ingredients and individual interpretations can differ.
Low-carb · Depends on the version
Compatibility depends on the portion and preparation. A sourced carbohydrate amount for a defined serving is not available.
Halal · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish halal status.
Kosher · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish kosher status.

For the plain ingredient · Awaiting review. Diet compatibility is not allergy suitability or halal/kosher certification. Keto and low-carb depend on the portion.

Reviewed ingredient entryIngredient reference · Preparations vary

AI-generated illustration for visual context. It does not identify a particular product or establish allergen content.

Sources & review

Nutrition reference: Australian Food Composition Database, Release 3, 2025 — Onion, mature, red skinned, raw ↗. Values are scaled from 100 g of the recorded edible form. Individual portions have no assumed fixed weight.

Expanded overview, name examples and nutrition notes are database drafts awaiting editorial review. Numeric nutrition values, where shown, have their own source and food-form reference.

The ingredient description and dish connections come from the draft catalogue and may change after review.

Last recorded verification: .