I had a similar “wtf” sensation when I encountered onion juice in a Michael Solomonov (Zahav, Philadelphia) recipe I recently made (http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/middle-eastern-lamb-skewe...). It called for a whole pureed onion in the marinade, and the very idea stunned and inspired me. The lamb was great; the funk cooked out but the harmony stayed. It got me thinking the same thing this post does: where else is there onion juice, figuratively speaking? Worthy, but driven out by a manipulation of culture?