Bless your heart!

This is from Nigella Lawson's website, but is basically what I found at other websites, including the recommendation for asafoetida. I might try the asafoetida

Although allium allergies are quite rare, they are frustrating as most cuisines use onions and/or garlic as a base for savoury dishes. As well as using just celery in dishes, you could use a combination of celery and carrot or celery, and green (bell) pepper to add more base flavour to your dishes. These reflect the ingredients of mirepoix (onion, celery and carrot) in French cooking and the trinity (onion, celery and green pepper) in Cajun cooking. Fennel is in the same family as celery and carrot and can also be used if you like a mild anise flavour.
Asafoetida (also known as giant fennel or hing) is also sometimes used as a substitute for garlic in cooking. It is used in Indian and Middle eastern cooking and you are most likely to find it in powdered form in specialist stores or on-line. Unfortunately it has quite an unpleasant smell in its uncooked form (one of the common names for asafoetida is devil's dung) so should be kept in a well-sealed jar or container. However, this smell disappears on cooking and leaves a flavour which is said to be similar to sauteed onion or garlic.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Spice House Asafoetida

I'm only just starting to put together recipes for a friend who can't have onion or garlic (but can have chives). I've been thinking about this a lot.

For the spaghetti sauce, I was thinking about other pungent things like turnips. I haven't tried it yet, mind you, but I do sometimes put a turnip in my chicken stock, which gives it some zing. For other dishes, substituting parsnips for carrots might work because they still have a sweetness, but also some of that pungency.

For developing flavors in general, there are all the old tricks. Roasting heavily to get good caramelization. I'm even planning to try roasting celery to see what happens. Balsamic vinegar. Really fresh top quality EVOO that has a good terroir--if you add this to your sauce, do it at the end. EVOO breaks down at heat.

Also, when you don't have onions, add some other acid. Put some dry wine or wine vinegar in the spaghetti sauce. I haven't tried lemon juice in spaghetti sauce, but it might be grand in some things lacking onions. Onions are also sweet, so adding extra carrot might be good (I usually do put some carrots in my spaghetti sauce). Celery root is starchy/sweet and also very pungent but I haven't tried it yet for this purpose.

And don't forget peppers! Mild chili peppers give more zing than heat. I often put an Anaheim chili (standard green chili pepper) in my spaghetti sauce, seeded but skin on. It just gives it that extra little something. More gutsy peppers can add a great depth of flavor to many dishes, either roasted or plain.

Do let us know how it comes out!

JC

Thank you so much for the suggestions! bbstx, thanks for the link. The powder is a lot less expensive than I thought that something like that would be. I think I will have to get some and try it (although I will probably have to keep it hidden and sneak it into the pot when DH isn't in the kitchen!) I had wondered about using turnips in some things but not quite sure it would work in S.S. I will try, though, adding some wine vinegar. plllog, if your friend can eat chives they are doing better than I am. My Mom used to grow a big clump of chives at the back stoop and I used to "graze" on it all the time :( Those were the days...
Thanks again ever so much!
Edie

I don't know if you eat mushrooms, but they can become very flavorful if cooked until browned (especially the crimini). I haven't used it, but I see here references to mushroom powder (on the chili contest thread) so maybe that would be worth a try.

Here is a link that might be useful: Shitake powder uses

Hi Edie,

I thought I was the only one in the world who was allergic to onions & garlic!
I'm not alone!

I use extra celery & bell peppers to replace the onion & help with the flavoring. I've also become more adventurous with spices to keep foods from being bland.

While trying to sort out some health issues I was having recently my Dr ran some blood tests for allergies & discovered I'm allergic to milk also!

My favorite food is chocolate ice cream with milk poured over it. I've got to break the habit because I'm having severe headaches & brain fog.

The hardest part of all this for me is making time to prepare just about everything from scratch & reading, reading, reading labels!

Please share any tips you have found to help as well as any recipes you especially like.

Good luck & please keep us posted on how you are doing. Sometimes we just need a little encouragement.

Betty

Add me to the list of those allergic to the allium family! Not only do onions, garlic, shallots, leeks, chives and green onions make me ill. I am also allergic to Sulfa and bananas give me indigestion. All are related.

I sub vinegars, citrus, pepper & salt- plain, smoked or flavored to add some depth to my dish. Rice vinegar (gluten free) and balsamic vinegar are my friends. I still have some sensitivities to vinegars, but in small doses they seem to be fine.
I'm also intolerant to wheat and most grains. It's not fun to be an allergic foodie!

Here is a link that might be useful: Interesting link

I add a snort of apple cider vinegar to my spaghetti sauce and it's amazing how it wakes up the flavor, adding a nice savory tangy something.

It is nice to know that I am not alone. When we eat out and I have to ask what is in whichever entree I am thinking of ordering, I always get looked at like I have 2 heads or something! And sometimes even when I ask, as soon as I taste it, oh dear... "Oh, I forgot that they put garlic in it". Jeesh!!!
I do use lots of herbs - I have a pretty extensive herb garden. Salt I have to use rather sparingly (high blood pressure) and I just am not a fan of overly hot/spicy foods. Most things are fine by leaving out onions and garlic, it is just I am getting tired of sort-of-blah spaghetti sauce so i really do appreciate the advice!
One other dish I really miss being able to eat is the old-fashioned green bean casserole. I have tried substituting all kinds of things for the french-fried onions (toasted sliced almonds, toasted pecans, cracker crumbs, croutons, crumbled up potato chips and corn chips) but nothing has the right flavor or consistency. I know, I should not be whining but holiday dinner season is right around the corner already!!
Thanks again, everyone! It's good to "meet" you!!
Edie

Edie, Have you tried Chicharrónes in your casserole? I'd think it was the right consistency, though obviously a different flavor.

My friend is allowed to have allium greens but not bulbs, but she's allowed to have fennel. I think you have to have a microscope to understand what's in and what's out (they have a list). I just made this chili with no onions or garlic, and it's very mild (determined by how much heat one puts in--that's easily altered to taste). I think it came out nicely. Tasty. For me, it needs more heat, but that can be added at the table. This is purposefully very mild, with just enough oomph to be able to call it chili. The only thing an allium avoider would have to substitute for is the chives. JC's GF, No-onion, No-garlic Poultry and Vegetable Chili

Yield: 18-19 cups.

Roasted vegetables
1/8-1/4 cup roasted and seeded chilis (jalapeño & serrano, or whatever you like)
2 bulbs fennel, roasted and sliced
Heat broiler to 375°, with convection if you have it. Wash peppers, leaving the stems. Wash fennel and cut off the tops to use in something else. Cut into eighths vertically, removing core. Separately, put the peppers and the fennel in a bowl and coat lightly with cooking oil. Cover a baking sheet with parchment, and put the peppers on one side and the fennel on the other. Roast under the broiler for about half an hour, until turning brown in places. Remove from oven. Slice fennel the short way into strips no more than 1/4" wide. Put on food service gloves if you have them. Remove stems from peppers, slit open, and scrape off the seeds. When they're all clean, put in a pile and chop fine.

Spices
2 heaping tsp. dried Mexican oregano
3/4 tsp. paprika
2 heaping tsp. ground cumin
1-1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

Poultry
2 lbs. ground chicken
2 lbs. ground turkey

Vegetables
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
65 g chives, chopped (substitute kale stems chopped small, or a small minced turnip, or skip)
150 g carrots, chopped
300 g zucchini, quartered and sliced

Packaged, or make your own (I was working from a family recipe to start with--I've put what I used but any will do):
1-2 cans no onion or garlic tomato sauce (Whole Foods 365 organic: organic tomato puree, sea salt, organic sugar, organic red pepper, citric acid)
1 bottle fresh vegetable juice (Colombia Gorge Organic fresh Carrot Leafy Greens Blend: carrot, romaine, spinach, kale, collard greens).
1 large can crushed tomatoes (San Marzano: tomato concentrate (water, tomato paste), diced tomatoes, sea salt, calcium chloride, xanthan gum, citric acid (I usually use organic but this was in the cupboard))

1/2-1 cup corn meal
10 g mixed dried mushrooms, powdered in nut mill or similar
1/4 cup White balsamic vinegar
Lite olive oil or other cooking oil

Black pepper to taste.

In an 8-10 qt. pot, start carrots in oil at medium-high heat until they begin to soften. Add all veg and roasted veg but not zucchini. Sauté until starting to soften.

While that's going, brown poultry in a very hot pan to get caramelization (over 350° degrees). Add to the pot with the veg when the sauté is done. Deglaze with a little water and add to chili pot. Combine well.

Add zucchini, and packages. Simmer over medium heat, stirring regularly. Add water as needed to almost cover--not too much. Once everything is well combined, add spices. Mix well and add cornmeal, mushroom powder and vinegar. When the cornmeal has absorbed most of the water, about 5 minutes, taste. Add black pepper to suit yourself. Add more vinegar if it seems bland. Adjust any seasonings to suit, but go easy if you want mild. The flavors start to pop mid-way through the coming simmer.

Reduce heat to the high end of low and cover pot. Simmer for about an hour--no more. Poultry doesn't benefit from a long cook the way beef does. Check seasoning occasionally. Dish up into containers to cool--don't leave it in the pot to cook more in its own heat.