The look like shallots to me. I've grown shallots that I've purchased from Asian markets and they grew well but this year on bought some from the same market and they never sprouted.

My guess would be that they are seed grown shallots, rather than those that are propagated from bulbs. How well it will do when planted is an unknown to me as I haven't attempted it. I've never planted shallots from seed nor have I planted the bulbs grown from seed, although I have thought about it.

Rodney

Read the variety info for Zebrune shallots from Botanical Interests.

"Variety Information: Thick, 2"–6" long, torpedo-shaped bulbs with a copper-colored wrapper and cream-colored interior. 'Zebrune' is also called Cuisse de Poulet de Poitou."

I don't know how familiar you are with bulb propogated shallots but they don't come close to this size.

Rodney

P.S. Here's the link.

https://www.botanicalinterests.com/product/Zebrune-Shallot-Onion-Seeds

Thanks...from the pics that I saw, zebrune is most usually a single bulb type, where this one I have has 3 good sized cloves in each sheath. I don't think that it's zebrune, but still going to plant it and see what happens!

Shallots from seed have become a common commercial technique in recent years. Generally they are still multipliers, but keeping quality varies as does type and quality of the bulb. First year shallot from seed tends to be a single bulb often much larger than those in the nest it might produce in up-coming years if planted back. Commercial growers often prefer to use seed rather than sets, in part because then they don't have to store stocks or fall plant and the first year bulbs from seed are often bigger than set grown and they are uniform hybrids. There is often no way of knowing whether the giant shallots from a supermarket will winter over from a fall planting as far north as zone 5 or whether they will keep long enough to be spring planted.

Thanks old dutch! These that I have are in clumps of 3...the entire bin was all clumps of 3..so going by what you've said, they probably didn't come from seed. I found these very large named varieties in New Zealand..maybe they are something along those lines? Scroll down for pics...but it is interesting to read that they plant bulbs only and get huge shallots.

https://garlico.nz/our-products/

There are tendencies involved to a certain extent, but there really is no hard and fast rule. Shallots tend to be multiplier onions, but all kinds and sizes of different ones are called shallot in one place or another, and quite often those various areas don't agree. Some are red and some are yellow, there are also white ones, but the greys are actually a different species from the rest. Other than the greys nearly all the rest can come either from sets or from seed.