Caramelised Onions
Onions cooked low and slow until jammy, sweet and golden. For burgers, tarts, toasties and gravy.
makes 21 cubes, about 12p each
- Time
- 1 hr10 min prep · 50 min cook
- Makes
- 21 cubes
- Cost per cubePer cube
- 12p
- Calories per cubeCalories
- 69 kcal
- A serving
- 1 cube
- Spice
- 1 of 5
You’ll need
- 2kgonions, thinly sliced
- 50gbutter
- 30mlolive oil
- 15mlbalsamic vinegar
- 10gbrown sugar
- 6gsalt
Allergens: Milk, Sulphites. Check the labels on stock cubes, sauces and pastes, as brands vary.
Use it for
Burger or hot dog topping · 1 cube; Cheese toastie · 1 cube; French onion soup: 6 cubes, 400ml beef stock · 6 cubes
Method
- Step 1: Melt the butter with the oil in a very large pan over a medium-low heat.
- Step 2: Add the onions and salt and cook, stirring every few minutes, for 50 minutes until deep golden and jammy.
- Step 3: Add a splash of water whenever they start to catch.
- Step 4: Stir in the balsamic and sugar for 2 minutes.
- Step 5: Cool, spoon into 30ml trays and freeze.
| kcal | protein | carbs | fat | fibre | salt | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Per cube | 69 | 1.1g | 9.1g | 3.3g | 1.6g | 0.32g |
Cook’s notes
- Thaw for 30 minutes, or drop straight into a hot pan.
- They cook down to about a quarter of their raw weight.
- There's no shortcut: higher heat burns them before they sweeten.
Use it for
- Burger or hot dog topping · 1 cube
- Cheese toastie · 1 cube
- French onion soup: 6 cubes, 400ml beef stock · 6 cubes
Freeze, reheat and serve
- Freeze
- Cool it within two hours, freeze it in 30ml ice-cube trays, then bag and label the cubes. It keeps for 6 months.
- Use from frozen
- Thaw for 30 minutes, or drop straight into a hot pan. Never refreeze thawed cubes.
- A portion
- 1 cube is a serving: about 69 kcal.
Caramelised Onions questions
Can I use red onions?
Red onions give a darker, slightly sweeter result that's good with cheese and in tarts. Brown onions are milder and better for gravy and soups.
Why add water when they start to catch?
A splash of water lifts the browned bits from the bottom of the pan back into the onions, so you keep that flavour instead of letting it burn. It cooks off again in a minute or two.
Can I make them dairy-free?
Use all olive oil instead of the butter and oil mix. They'll taste a little less rich but caramelise just as well.
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Updated . Nutrition, costs and yields are estimates.