George Washington Loved Onions So Much That He Ate This 1700s Dish

George Washington's Mount Vernon estate was known for its well-stocked farm and vast vegetable garden. It provided incredible ingredients to satiate his culinary curiosity. With both a distillery and gristmill on his estate, the first President of the United States enjoyed a booze-filled eggnog recipe, and one of Washington's favorite foods was the hoe cake. But a meal that he reportedly loved was a creation to delight onion lovers. This dish used these edible bulbs as its base, and they were stuffed with mincemeat. The "I cannot tell a lie" Commander-in-Chief liked it so much that it's rumored it was served at his 1783 military farewell dinner.

To prepare this dish for the leader of the free world, firm onions, perhaps smaller than what we encounter at the grocery store today, were selected and cored. Then heaping spoonfuls of mincemeat were used to fill the hollowed onion; however, the mincemeat back in Washington's day wasn't sweet. It would have consisted of savory ingredients like beef suet, ground beef, currants, and warm spices. The assembled onion then received an ample egg bath to encourage it to brown and caramelize as it fried or roasted in a pan until the exterior turned soft.

If President Washington's favorite stuffed onion has your mouth salivating, you can make your own version of this dish. There are plenty of different types of onions, but go for the sweet variety. A Vidalia onion is perfect for this recipe. You also want to look for onions that are uniform in size so they will cook at the same rate. And for a pro tip, consider salting them inside and out after you core them, but before you add your filling. This will add some flavor and really bring out the sweetness of this veggie. 

For the stuffing, use a traditional mincemeat like Washington to get the full experience, or create your own savory filling using ground beef, lamb, sausage, chicken, or turkey as a base. If you prefer something vegetarian, consider using a traditional cornbread stuffing, rice, or quinoa. Or create a mash-up using a meaty spaghetti sauce for the filling. Top it with a sprinkle of bread crumbs and parmesan, and each bite will have you saying, "That's amore." Once stuffed, you can cook them in the air fryer for about 20 minutes or consider slow roasting them in the oven for just shy of an hour. You want them tender and soft.