Shallot

The shallot (Allium cepa var. aggregatum, or the Aggregatum group A. cepa) is a botanical variety of the species Allium cepa, to which the multiplier onion also belongs. The shallot was formerly classified as a separate species, A. ascalonicum, a name now considered a synonym of the currently accepted name. Shallots, like onions and garlic, are now classified in the plant family Amaryllidaceae, but were formerly considered to belong to the separate family Alliaceae. Shallots probably originated in Central or Southeast Asia, traveling from there to India and the eastern Mediterranean. The name "shallot" comes from Ashkelon, an ancient Philistine city, where people in classical Greek times believed shallots originated. Indian names for...