Substitute for garlic and onions

Okay so I just moved back in with my mom, and her number one rule is NO ONIONS OR GARLIC!! She hates the smell and can smell it from a mile away. What substitute can I use? Onion and Garlic powder are off limits too. I hate it, onions and garlic are in EVERYTHING I MAKE!!! HELP!!!!

Christina Marie Smith
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4 Comments

Claire August 18, 2017
My tummy can't tolerate onion or garlic and now that I have completely cut them out I can't stand the smell either. At first I had to re-learn how to cook all my faves without those pesky things. I thought I would die! I'm a vegetarian so EVERYTHING had onion! But I soon got used to it. And now I hardly notice the difference. Here are some ideas: I brown butter and celery instead of onions when making soup. Fennel or celeriac also works-actually frying any veg for a soup will work. Soup is where I really notice it the most. For garlic/onion flavour I use Herbamare and I put it on everything! Nutritional yeast also works too. You can buy chopped garlic/onion dried in bottles or chopped frozen and just add it to your own food. If it's not on her chopping boards and knives (I swear we have an onion/garlic only board in our house just for my husband) she might not smell it so much.
 
Lost_in_NYC August 18, 2017
Two of my family members dont eat onions and garlic for religious reasons but the other two do and are allowed to eat it in the house. We've grown accustomed to eating foods without it (it was a bit of a struggle in the beginning but its manageable).

One option was that instead of cooking with these ingredients, we just add raw onions as a garnish or topping to dishes. But as Piece mentioned, there really is no substitute. Perhaps you can ask your mom to compromise and allow you to cook/use these ingredients when she's not home or keep the vent fan on/burn scented candles or use Frebreeze or something if its going to be painful.
 
Nancy August 18, 2017
And/or treat your withdrawal symptoms by cooking an occasional garlic-onion meal at the home of friends who share your tastes.
 
PieceOfLayerCake August 17, 2017
If you like the flavor of alliums...there's really no substitute. There are other aromatics like celery, carrots or ginger, which will bring sweetness and heat....but nothing can replace the unique flavor or onions and garlic. Tough gig, but my partner isn't a huge fan of onions or garlic either so I've learned to minimize my usage and I add flavor in other ways. Try to think of this as an opportunity to use other ingredients to add depth (like mushrooms or spices). It's possible.
 
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