Caramelized Onions

Caramelized onions have a complex flavor profile with hints of sweet, tangy, savory, earthy notes and a melt-in-your-mouth texture.

We’ll show you how to make caramelized onions in a skillet with 6 simple ingredients and how to use them to elevate any dish.

Try them on spreads, salads, bowls, burgers, sandwiches, pasta, pizza, and rice dishes.

Onions are the most important vegetable in a kitchen. They are flavor chameleons and adapt to your needs.

From tart, crispy, quick pickled red onions to citrusy and aromatic sumac onions.

To the crucial role that onions play in flavor bases like soffritto, where they add sweetness and complexity.

Here, however, we are showing you how to make caramelized onions.

Sliced onions are cooked slowly over medium to low heat until their natural sugars caramelize.

The onions develop a golden-brown color, a soft texture, and a bold, sweet, and savory flavor.

Try them in a black bean burger, pizza, hummus, zucchini fritters, or stuffed bell peppers. They make any dish better!

Quantities are in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.

1. Prepare the ingredients

You can use onions of any color (we use yellow onions), olive oil, sugar, apple cider vinegar or balsamic vinegar, salt, and water.

Peel the onions and cut them into ⅕ inch or ½ cm slices.

2. Sautè onions

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet with a heavy bottom.

Cast iron skillets are ideal, but non-stick and stainless steel skillets also work well.

Add the sliced onions, sugar, and salt and sauté on medium-high heat for 5 minutes until they start to soften and become translucent.

3. Cook slowly

Add the water and simmer on medium-low heat for about 20 to 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

After about 30 minutes, your onions should be soft and golden brown, and the pan should be dry and hot.

Tip: If you double our recipe or increase the onions, you’ll need more than 30 minutes. As the pan gets crowded, the caramelization process slows down.

Also, we noticed that the process goes fast on cast iron, while it takes longer for the onions to caramelize on non-stick pans.

4. Add vinegar

Turn the heat to high and add vinegar to the hot pan.

Stir the onions for a couple of minutes to mix them with the vinegar.

When the vinegar has been absorbed completely, turn the heat off, taste the onions, and adjust for salt if necessary.

Tip: The vinegar deglazes the pan, adds acidity, and boosts the tangy and savory flavors of the caramelized onions.

If the onions stick to the pan, that’s fine. Keep stirring with a wooden spoon and scrape all browned bits from the pan, but make sure the onions burn.

You can use caramelized onions as your not-so-secret ingredient to boost the flavor of many dishes, from appetizers to mains and side dishes.

APPETIZER: Try them with focaccia bread & confit tomatoes, hummus & pita bread, on flatbread pizza, Neapolitan pizza, bruschetta, crostini with olive tapenade, farinata, or any of our appetizer recipes.

MAIN DISH: We love them on zucchini fritters, chickpea fritters, and stuffed veggies like butternut squash, zucchini, tomatoes, and bell peppers.

They are delicious on Mujadara and Moroccan couscous, in a black bean burger, or a focaccia sandwich.

They are also the perfect base for making French onion soup or filling in quiches.

Make ahead: Caramelized onions are excellent for meal prep as they keep for days in the fridge.

Refrigerator: Keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.

Freezer: Let the onions cool down completely, transfer them to a freezer-friendly container, and freeze them for up to 3 months.

You can also freeze them in ice cube trays. When they are solidly frozen, remove them from the tray and transfer them into a freezer-safe bag.

This trick lets you thaw the onions in small portions without defrosting the whole batch.

Thaw: Defrost them in the refrigerator for several hours. Serve at room temperature.

Similar Recipes

COOKING BASICS: how to cook chickpeas, lentils, red lentils, artichokes, asparagus, quinoa, black beans, white beans, and couscous.

FLAVOR BOOSTERS: chermoula, chimichurri, tahini sauce, tomato confit, pickled red onions, sumac onions, dukkah, vegan mayo, white sauce, salsa verde.

Basics

Quick Pickled Red Onions

Sides

Sumac onions

Starters

Tomato Confit

Sauces

Chermoula