How to Cook Onions Properly

Many people dislike onions in their food and many others think onions are supposed to taste burnt and coarse because they have never had the experience of well cooked onions, their experience has always been the quick-cooked version. This article teaches you about the long-cook style that will reward you with sweet, rich and delicious onions that are definitely worth the effort and will make a dish that includes onions even better than it has ever been.

Ingredients

500 g sliced onions
Olive oil

Steps

1
Be prepared for a long cooking process. It takes 40 minutes to achieve a decent tasting onion. Quick cooking leaves the onion in its acrid-tasting state and does not bring out the sweetness hidden within the onion.
2
Slice 500 grams of onion.

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3
Place in a heavy based frying pan with olive oil.
4
Cook slowly on low heat for 40 minutes. Allow the onion to caramelize in its own natural sugars during this time.
5
Try a shortcut if you lack the time to do this by microwaving.
- Slice as usual, place in a microwave proof dish and cover it.
- Place in the microwave and zap until soft.
- Do not add water.
- Add the microwaved onions to the pan for preparation as part of your chosen recipe, and they'll already be sweet.

Community Q&A
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Question

What does a cartouche do when used for onions?

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A cartouche is a layer of greaseproof paper that is laid on top of onions that are being "sweated" (i.e., cooked gently in a little butter or oil before being used in a recipe). The cartouche is also useful for the same purpose when braising vegetables or poaching fruit.
Question

How do you slice onions?

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To slice an onion, peel and halve it first. Then, put the rounded side facing upward on the cutting board. Have the root end at the far end of your hand. Bend your fingers onto the onion half to hold securely, using your thumb to keep the onion from slipping. With a sharp kitchen knife, slice the onion evenly, keeping the knife tip in contact with the cutting board as you draw the knife through. Once most of the onion half has been sliced, and you're at the root end, turn the remaining piece of onion onto the largest flat side left and slice again––this prevents any from being wasted.
Question

What does it mean to "sweat" onions?

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Sweating onions is a cooking term that refers to softening the onions first and cooking just long enough to enhance the natural sweetness they contain but not so much as to let them turn brown. Usually either butter or vegetable oil is used to perform this cooking technique. To help seal in the sweet juices and keep the onions moist, a cartouche (a layer of greaseproof paper) is usually placed over the onions during the sweating process. Once sweated, the onions can be used in the recipe as directed.

Warnings

If you do not cook onions long enough, they will taste acidic and half cooked onions are difficult for the stomach to digest. If you are trying to convince someone who dislikes onions to try them again, use the long-cooking process instead.

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