Caramelized Onions
About 4 cups Whereas sautéed onions can still have some pungency and texture, caramelized onions are meltingly tender and savory-sweet with—as their name implies—caramel notes. They are a wonderful, flavor-packed garnish for all types of cooked dishes. These cook down to a fraction of their original volume and can be refrigerated for a few days or frozen for several months. TRADITIONAL The traditional method of slowly sweating the onions does not have to be burdensome. Think of it as a kitchen-bound lacuna in the story of your life, where contemplation and mindfulness can flourish as the onions slowly surrender their moisture and turn a deep bronze.
Let's Prepare
Collect
Gather these ingredients — no prep needed yet.
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 pounds yellow or white onions, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup dry white wine or water
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Let's Cook
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Step 1.
Heat in a very large skillet over medium-high heat until the butter is melted: 2 tablespoons butter; 2 tablespoons olive oil
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Step 2.
Add: 3 pounds yellow or white onions, thinly sliced
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Step 3.
Sprinkle with: 1 teaspoon salt
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Step 4.
Cook, stirring constantly, for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to low to medium-low and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and brown, about 40 minutes. When the residue from the juices has built up in the skillet, add: ½ cup dry white wine or water
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Step 5.
Stir and scrape the skillet to dissolve the browned bits. They will immediately mix into the onions, darkening them further. Remove from the heat and season with: Salt and black pepper to taste
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Step 6.
QUICK
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Step 7.
If you do not need to make such a large quantity of onions or simply do not have an hour to spend properly caramelizing them, prepare Sautéed Onions, adding ½ teaspoon sugar halfway through cooking. When the onions are browned, deglaze the skillet with ¼ cup white wine, scrape up any browned bits, and cook, stirring, until the liquid has evaporated.