How to Brown and Caramelize Onions Properly

Question

Hi!
I tried the Babylonian Stew. Wonderful recipe.
My question. In the recipe (and any other time I try it) it calls for cooking the onions in the first-ish step to brown them. The leeks needed to be washed but then dried so the moisture wouldn't prevent browning. Well, with or without leeks, whenever I try to "brown" or carmelize onions, it doesn't work. I just get translucent onions because the amount of moisture inherently in the onions leaches out and more steams or boils than fries them. Especially not in the timeframe indicated in the recipes, including this one which I think was about 6 minute. So, how does one actually go about getting carmelized or even just browned onions? I'd love to be able to put some on a bbq sandwich or a hamburger.
Thanks,
JB

Lynn Clark · Accepted Answer

Hi John -
Browned onions and caramelized onions are two different things. Caramelized onions are generally cooked for a longer time (1/2 hour or so) over lower heat. This yields sweet, soft onions that are great on a burger, pizza, or sandwich. Browned onions are usually quickly cooked and yield crispier, slightly more bitter onions. A couple of key things for properly caramelized onions - make sure to use a large enough pan. If the pan is too small, the moisture released from the onions will not evaporate and the onions won't caramelize. Second, don't overcrowd the pan. Again, if there are too many onions, the moisture won't evaporate and the onions will brown unevenly. For browned onions, we generally cook these over medium or medium-high. Everyone's stovetop is different so our "medium" in a recipe may align more closely with your medium-high. If you find they aren't browning in the time called for in the recipe you can either cook them longer until they start to brown or increase the heat (or both). Hope this helps! Best, Lynn C.

How to Brown and Caramelize Onions Properly

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