Is this onion safe to eat? Mould on skin see pic

[muchstermonch]

Hello! I have an onion that has some black mould on the skin. See pic. It's only on one side (rest of skin is perfectly fine)! Would you peel it and use it?
Not sure if safe or not.

I compare mine to ogres!

The onions that is, not the men 😉

Just what I was thinking! I've got rid of the skin and even one or two inner layers before and cooked and eaten one... still sitting here so... go for it @muchstermonch ! 🍷(rather sadly no onion emoji so have a glass of wine instead )

It's not just the cost of the onion. All that food waste has an environmental impact. Please don't chuck perfectly good food away. Use what you have and buy less.

People - just peel your onions.

It's a thing. It's been a thing for a mighty long time.

Just peel it until there is no more mould !

This kind of post just makes me want to be sarcastic.

Just peel it and see!

I honestly can't believe you're asking the question.

Are people really that unable to make the simplest of decisions themselves?

I am glad @muchstermonch is going to eat it.
Like pp I am shocked at the posters that have said throw it away.
I too use sprouting spuds , past their best salad days mushrooms and tomatoes and when spring onions get limp and sad I stick them in a glass with a tiny bit of water and regrow them .

I cut open a onion a few days ago , the outside layers were fine , then one soggy layer then the center was fine . So I just used the center .

Precisely what I was thinking! The lack of common sense is enough to make many of us despair.

Thanks for your understanding nature. My concern was that I'd never actually seen black mould of this particular type on an onion. In real life it is very black and large, which is hard to see from the picture, but looks almost like big black ink splotches rather than the usual bit of dusty mould.

Having read all sorts of horror stories about black mould, I felt I should ask before consuming it. As a lay person I have no idea if it can penetrate invisibly or have a bad health effect (knowing the dangers of black mould in general). But stupid old me asking on mumsnet eh?

At the very least I have educated others who might otherwise not have known. And now I know I can eat it as well.

I refer you to my answer above. Stupid old me eh?

it's a good question.
especially this year with all the rain we had we will see more mould on fresh veg.

it's good to ask what to do if unsure imo!

You are getting a hard time from some posters @muchstermonch , when it comes to food it's best to check, can you imagine the responses you get if you came on here saying you'd eaten something with black mould on it and now were worried. 🤔

Bit of black mould on onion outer skin is relatively common. It's from the soil. Many people don't regularly encounter it if they buy cleaned onion in bags which had the most outer layer taken off to look nicer.
Just an fyi for anyone worried.

Funnily I would be more nervous about the white fluffy mould on onions. Now thag kne is a bastard imho

I heard my onion was grown in the soil, is it safe? Could I get tetanus?

Strip it down and see if it goes below skin deep.

Would you prefer me to have thrown it away, having never seen mould like it before and not knowing if it unsafe, rather than to ask the question? I'm glad it amused you though.

'Common sense' is a meaningless term.

People learn from others. If they haven't had that opportunity, the wise thing to do is ask a question, as the OP did.

None of us knows everything. The wise ask questions.

Hi OP hope you enjoyed your onion. You will only learn if you ask so I don't know why people are giving you a hard time

Well said. No one is born knowing their onions

Are you not aware of the changes around food production and sales that have occured in the last one hundred years?

In modern society, many people buy vegetables in a place called a 'supermarket'. Very few people grow their own these days. Supermarkets consistently present fruit and veg with very few blemishes - almost all blemishes are rejected at the wholesale stage. Consequently, consumers can be a bit confused when they get veg with a blemish.

Sensible consumers, like @muchstermonch , recognise they have a gap in their knowledge and ask questions rather than assuming the worst. Then kind people answer and personal progress is made.

Unfortunately some people make snarky remarks when questions are asked, but you can't have everything!

I really like this username

Glad you didn't chuck the onion OP and I hope it was tasty!

Those pennies might be pounds to someone.

Take the layers off and see what's underneath

thank you @EmotionalSupportPotato . Thanks to your support and amazing username I am now considering changing my username to "MuchAdoAboutAnOnion"