This quick caramelized onion recipe requires just 4 ingredients and about 15 minutes. All you need are onions, olive oil, kosher salt, and balsamic vinegar glaze or reduction.
Why You'll love this recipe:
To make these delicious quick caramelized onions, you'll need a few simple ingredients, a good pan, a wooden spoon, and about 10-15 minutes.
The traditional methods for making most of the caramelized onion recipes takes a very long time. But because I never have much time, this quick shortcut has become my go-to recipe.
My secret ingredient is balsamic vinegar reduction. Not only does it add amazing color, but it also adds a sweet flavor that speeds up the cooking process. The results are perfectly golden brown caramelized onions that add a burst of flavor to your favorite dishes.
The resulting onions have a rich flavor, natural sweetness and a beautiful golden brown color. And the best part is, they make the perfect addition to your favorite dishes that need a little something extra.
I love them so much and I know they will quickly become one of your favorite toppings and a great addition to your quick cooking repertoire.
These quick caramelized onions have endless uses. Some of my favorite ways to use them are with some bone broth in a delicious french onion soup.
Or you can do something more simple like add them to this tasty caramelized onion burger grilled cheese recipe. Stir them into some seasoned mayo or sour cream for a tasty and quick french onion dip. Or add them on top of steak or pork chops with a knob of blue cheese.
Oh, and making a double batch if always a good idea!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Onions: My favorite onions to use are vidalia onions (also known as sweet onions) because they have so much natural sweetness. But you can use yellow onions, red onions, or white onions. Because of the amount of natural sweetness between the onion varietals, you'll have slightly different results. But don't owryr, they'll all still be absolutely delicious.
- Oil: When it comes to my quick caramelized onion recipe, I think the best cooking fat is olive oil. You could use another neutral oil of your choice. You could also use olive oil and a combo of butter but butter burns more quickly so I think it's best to stick to olive oil.
- Salt: Kosher salt gives the best results. If you're using another type of salt, you'll want to use less.
- Balsamic Vinegar Glaze: If you're using just regular aged balsamic vinegar, all you need to add is a little bit of brown sugar or regular cane sugar to speed up the caramelization process. You could also use apple juice and a splash of balsamic vinegar.
How to Caramelize Onions Quickly - Detailed Instructions
Slice Onion: The first thing you'll want to do to make quick caramelized onions is to slice your onions super thin. Thinly sliced onions will help the onions caramelize quicker than using large slices.
Choose Pan: Once the onions are sliced, it's time to choose the right pan pan to use. I recommend choosing a nonstick pan, large skillet, cast iron, a large sauté pan or one of your favorite stainless steel pans.
Melt Fat: Next, you'll want to heat the pan over medium heat and add the olive oil (or melt butter if you're using butter).
Add Onions & Salt: Then you'll add the raw onions and salt to the hot pan. Cook the onions down for a couple of minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan consistently to remove any of the lovely browned bits from the maillard reaction.
Maillard Reaction: The maillard reaction is the chemical reaction that basically makes foods golden brown. It happens when amino acids and sugars reduce which creates new browning compounds and then change the look and flavor of food. Depending on the natural sugars from the softened onions, the exact timing on the cooking time will vary.
Tips if Taking Too Long: If you think that the onions are taking too long, you can cook them at a higher heat (I recommend not going above a medium high heat) just make sure you're consistently stirring them to avoid burning. And if you notice that the onions need more moisture or they're starting to burn too fast, add a bit of water (about 2 tablespoons of water) and continue cooking.
Add Balsamic Vinegar Glaze: Once the sauteed onions are softened and slightly golden brown, add the balsamic vinegar glaze. If you only have balsamic vinegar - that's fine, you can just add a hefty pinch of brown sugar. Once the balsamic vinegar glaze has coated all the onions, drop the heat to low heat and cook for a few more minutes, continuously scraping the bottom of the pan to get the best results. The onions are ready when the finished result is jammy and caramelized.
Store Leftovers: If you have leftover caramelized onions, let them get to room temperature place them in an airtight container. You can also make a big batch and store them for an extended period of time. I recommend placing the end result in ice cube trays. This is my secret weapon to add more flavor to soups, pasta dishes, and more.
What to serve them with
Here are some of my favorite recipes that are delicious with quick caramelized onions:
- Patty Melt with Caramelized Onions & Bacon (Bubba Burger Recipe)
- Smash Burger Grilled Cheese with Gouda, Truffle Mayo & Caramelized Onions
- Savory Breakfast Pop Tarts with Cheesy Eggs, Sausage, Onions and Everything Seed Puff Pastry
- Caramelized Zucchini Pasta
- 4 Ingredient Creamy Tomato Pasta Recipe with Sausage & Boursin Cheese
- Cheesy Asparagus Puff Pastry with Caramelized Onion Jam
- Easy Tartiflette with Comte Cheese
- Viral One-Pot French Onion Pasta Recipe
- Cheesy French Onion Crockpot Potatoes
Recipe
How to Make Quick Caramelized Onions (Easy & Fast Recipe)
Equipment
- 1 Nonstick Pan
Ingredients
- 3 large Sweet Onions thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoon Olive Oil
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 2 tablespoon Balsamic Glaze
Instructions
- Add olive oil to a large saute pan over medium heat.
- Once the olive oil is hot, add the onions and salt and stir. Cook this mixture down for about 10 minutes, stirring constantly and scraping up any bits on the bottom of the pan. If they onions are getting too dried out, add 2 tablespoon of water at a time until they're turning golden brown.
- Once they've softened and are starting to gain some color, add in the balsamic vinegar glaze. Drop the heat down to low and stir this mixture consistently until all the onions are coated. Continue cooking for a few more minutes until the onions look deep golden brown.
- Turn off the heat and season with salt and pepper if needed.
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