Onion, Garlic & Allium Allergy
Allium Allergy Card (Onion & Garlic)
Create a bilingual card that names every allium — onion, garlic, shallot, leek, chive, scallion — in the local language, because "allium" alone does not translate.
Free to create · $8.99 unlocks every language, every template and unlimited re-downloads
Why "Allium" Is the Word That Breaks Google Translate
Allium allergy — onion, garlic, shallot, leek, chive and scallion — is one of the hardest restrictions to communicate abroad, for a simple reason: most languages have no everyday word for "allium". Paste "I am allergic to alliums" into a translator and you get botanical Latin, a literal transliteration (Japanese アリウム, which no line cook knows), or silence. The only reliable approach is to list each vegetable by its local name: 玉ねぎ・にんにく・長ねぎ・浅葱 in Japanese, cebolla, ajo y chalota in Spanish. Our card does exactly that.
The second problem is that alliums are not an ingredient — they are the foundation. Onion and garlic are the first thing in the pan for Italian soffritto, French mirepoix-based sauces, Mexican salsas and sofritos, Indian tadka, Chinese stir-fries and Japanese curry roux. Commercial curry roux blocks (S&B, House) all contain onion and garlic powder; ramen tare and soup bases are built on them; most stocks, bouillons, marinades and salad dressings contain dehydrated onion or garlic even when nothing onion-like is visible.
This is also a restriction with real precedent: Jain cuisine and many Buddhist temple kitchens (Japanese shōjin ryōri excludes the five pungent roots, 五葷) cook entirely without alliums. That means "allium-free" is an executable request in much of Asia — but only if the kitchen understands exactly which vegetables you mean. A card that enumerates them turns an impossible conversation into a routine one.
Why a Dedicated Allium Card Works
Names each allium, not the family
The card lists onion and garlic explicitly in the target language instead of relying on "allium" — a word most kitchen staff worldwide have never heard.
Covers the hidden forms
Onion powder, garlic powder, bouillon cubes, stock bases and curry roux are the real exposure. Add them as a card note so "no onion" is not read as "no raw onion rings".
Works where the restriction is understood
Japan (shōjin ryōri tradition), India (Jain cooking) and Taiwan (Buddhist vegetarian, 素食/五辛) all have established no-allium kitchen practice — the card lets you invoke it in one line.
Severity is yours to set
For some this is anaphylaxis, for others a strict intolerance. Choose the cross-contact setting that matches your medical reality so the kitchen neither under- nor over-reacts.
How to Create Your Allium Allergy Card
Select both "Garlic" and "Onion"
They are separate entries — select both. The card prints each vegetable's name in the target language, which is the only reliable way to communicate the allium family abroad.
Add shallots, leeks and chives as custom items
If you react to the whole family, add shallot (eschalot), leek, chive and scallion/spring onion as custom allergens so nothing in the family is left ambiguous.
Add a note about powders and stocks
A note like "including onion/garlic powder, stock cubes and curry roux" closes the loophole that causes most exposures — dehydrated alliums in bases.
Choose your destination language
Japanese is pre-selected (the strongest search demand), but Spanish, French, Italian, Korean and Thai are equally supported.
Preview free, then download
Verify the bilingual wording in the live preview, then unlock the printable PNG/PDF for $8.99 — every language included.
Where Alliums Hide by Cuisine
- Japan: curry rice is the single highest-risk dish — commercial roux blocks all contain onion and garlic. Ramen soup bases (tare) and gyoza filling (garlic, nira chives, scallion) are next. Shōjin ryōri (Buddhist temple cuisine) restaurants cook without the five pungent roots and are the safest traditional option.
- Korea: garlic is fundamental — in kimchi, marinades (bulgogi, galbi), ssamjang and most banchan. Scallions top nearly every soup. Ask whether the kitchen can prepare a portion before garlic is added; some BBQ places can serve unmarinated meat (생고기) with salt only.
- Italy: soffritto (onion, carrot, celery sautéed in oil) starts most sauces, and garlic is standard in aglio e olio-style preparations. Tomato sauces, ragù and risotto almost always begin with onion — "senza cipolla e senza aglio" must cover the base, not just the garnish.
- Mexico and Latin America: fresh salsas, guacamole and pico de gallo are built on raw onion; rice and beans are often cooked with garlic and onion. The Spanish card reads "Soy alérgico/a a la cebolla y al ajo" plus powders and caldos (broths).
- India: onion-garlic tadka and pastes base most curries, but Jain restaurants and many pure-vegetarian kitchens cook without them by default — asking for "Jain preparation" is a widely understood shorthand.
- France: onion is in stocks, jus, tartes and soupe à l'oignon; shallots define many butter sauces. Garlic is lighter in the north, heavier in Provençal cooking (aïoli is a garlic emulsion).
Frequently Asked Questions
Why not just use Google Translate for "allium allergy"?
Does the card cover onion and garlic powder?
Is allium allergy a real allergy or an intolerance?
Are chives, leeks and shallots included?
Is the allium card free?
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Printable Allergy Card
Build a bilingual allergy card, preview it free, then download a print-ready PDF and a phone-ready PNG. Print at home on card stock or hand the PDF to any print shop.
Now on iOS
AllergyCard — Available on the App Store
The AllergyCard iOS app lets you show your allergy card offline, speak your restrictions aloud in the local language, and access an emergency screen — all without Wi-Fi. Free to download, available in 174 countries.
Download on the App StoreCreate your allergy card now
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