Skip to main content

How to Make Onion Powder and Onion Flakes

It's time to re-stock my onion powder and onion flakes.  Here is how you can make your own using a dehydrator (you could also use your oven if the temperature goes low enough).





Simply peel your onions, and chop them up.   You can use a non-electric hand chopper or simply dice them up quickly in a food processor. You can also dry them in slices if that's what you need for future meals, but they are too large to fit into a coffee grinder to make into powder.







Spread the chopped onions on parchment paper lined dehydrator trays, and dry in your dehydrator according to the instructions it comes with.

When the onions are dried, simply break apart your diced onions for "flaked" onions.  Place the remainder in a small coffee grinder and grind until it becomes a powder.

Store the onion flakes in airtight glass jars in your spice cabinet.  These will also collect moisture, so you may want to store them using my next tip.



Store the onion powder in your freezer to keep it dry and prevent it from hardening.  If you place it in your cabinet it will quickly harden, unlike garlic powder.  You can also put some white rice, a few beans in it, but I typically don't shake mine out.  I measure with a measuring spoon, and it's much easier for me if I don't have anything in the onion powder.  Shallot powder also hardens over time.

I recycled a jar the size of a half pint to store my onion powder, using a screw top lid.  My canning funnel fits in it perfectly to pour it out of the grinder easily.

Comments

Granny_J said…
Thanks for this tip. I bought a 3 pound bag of white onions yesterday and was hoping they wouldn't go bad before I could use them. I'll be using your tips from this post to make onion slices, diced onion and onion powder.
granny j, the slices would be great for soups this winter. I plan on getting more. We did not plant any this season.
Susan said…
That is good to know about the onion powder. I was just thinking that I should try to make some - I use it fairly often and would rather use my own onions. I hadn't realized it would harden and would not have been happy to be faced with a block of 'powder'!
I've preserved lots of food over the years but never made my own onion powder. What a goof! I sure will now. Thanks!
Susan, I have tried to come up with a way to keep the onion powder dry, and this is working so far.
Donna, I use onion powder as much as garlic, and love it! So much fresher than store bought too.

Popular posts from this blog

Chit Chat

  The pickings are slim right now, but we'll take anything we are blessed with.  I made a salad and cleaned the beans.  The rain will give us more for a meal in a day or so.  The green beans are every so slowly coming on this season. I made a batch of homemade granola, and instead of my homemade vanilla extract, I used my homemade Christmas Spice Extract.  It smelled so good in the oven, and while cooling.   I picked some purslane, and am doing an experiment with it this time.  Update soon.   Chit Chat ©  August 2026 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart

I've Been MIA and Heat Wave

First day of July.  It's hot.   I'm definitely not entering a stage of boredom any day soon.  Although I've been doing a lot, it's been productive.  We are in the middle of the worst heat wave I can ever remember.  So humid, there is very little to no work being done in the gardens for the last few days.  Heat index has been up to 106 degrees, and nights did not get any cooler than about  77 degrees.  The heat wave will continue for the rest of the week.  No rain yet. I froze water in small bottles to keep the chickens water cold, and froze treats for them. I canned a small batch of reduced sugar peach jam (before the heat  wave).  I have to admit, it's been very nice to can for two people now.   Enjoyed the last of our asparagus harvest.  The last two stalks were harvested June 29th.  The longest asparagus season we've ever had.  They look light colored, but taking them out of the fridge, they quickly...

Reminders?

      On the positive side (after the hot pepper debacle). . .                                                We are looking forward to creative healthy meals, derived from the garden and whatever is in abundance, or available.  The chickens helped supply this meal last year and was delicious. Beets roasted with onions and rosemary from the herb garden.  Also, a picture from previous garden years.  Oh, we put thyme on these too, and also from the herb garden. Not to forget those tomatoes and all the sauces made over the years.  That dish included asparagus from the garden, as well as oregano from the herb garden. Sometimes a roll down memory lane gives us the spark to keep gardening and planting.  Maybe.   Reminders?   ©  June 2026 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart