How to Caramelize Onions

Caramelizing onions by slowly cooking them in a little olive oil until they are richly browned is a wonderful way to pull flavor out of the simplest of ingredients. You can use onions prepared this way on top of meats, or for onion soup, pizza, or onion dip, or just eat it straight up!

Ingredients

Instructions:

1. Cut both ends from the onion, cut onion in half, remove peel and cut in 1/4-inch thick half-moon slices.
2. Use a wide, thick-bottomed sauté pan for maximum pan contact with the onions. Coat the bottom of the pan with olive oil, or a mixture of olive oil and butter, if using (about 1 teaspoon per onion).
3. Let the onions cook for 30-45 minutes more, stirring every few minutes. As soon as the onions start sticking to the pan, let them stick a little and brown, but then stir them before they burn.
4. After the first 20 to 30 minutes you may want to lower the stove temperature a little, and add a little more oil, if you find the onions are verging on burning.
5. Continue to cook and scrape, cook and scrape, until the onions are a rich, browned color. At the end of the cooking process you might want to add a little balsamic vinegar or wine to help deglaze the pan and bring some additional flavor to the onions.
6. Use right away or store refrigerated for several days in an air-tight container.

Source: simplyrecipes.com