Melting Onions

Friday 1 October 2021

Melting Onions 
I am in the process of testing side dishes for the up and coming holidays and this week I really wanted to try this recipe I found in a book by Diana Henry.  The name of the book is Pure Simple Cooking.

It is filled to overflowing with an abundance of simple recipes which require very few ingredients and not a lot of effort.  When you are talking holiday meals, any recipe which meets those requirements is a plus for me!

 
Melting Onions 
I adore onions.  They are quite simply one of my favorite vegetables and they go really well with roasts of any kind!  Turkey, beef, chicken, lamb, pork, even ham.  

These delectable onions would be a perfect side dish with any one of those meats.  And when I say delectable, I mean delectable. These onions simply melt in the mouth.

Melting Onions 
Are you the person who always wants to pig out on that onion which has roasted in the middle of your roast chicken?   (and who isn't!) If so, then this recipe is built just for you!

I don't know why I am always amazed when such simple ingredients and techniques come out crazy delicious. I shouldn't be.  We all know its the simple things in life which bring us the most pleasure after all!

Melting Onions

Caramelized onions are one of my favorite things to eat, but they are rather time consuming and you do have to keep a close watch on them.  Worth the effort, but still . . . 

When you are cooking a roast dinner you have plenty of other things to do, without having to babysit a skillet of onions!  With a tiny bit of prep, these quite simply cook themselves!  Easy peasy!  
 

Melting Onions 
As you all know by now, I am a no fuss no muss kind of a girl.  You can call it lazy if you want to, but the truth is I like recipes that can get me in and out of the kitchen with little or no effort.  

Yes, they have to taste delicious, but recipes that cook themselves?  Sign me up!

Melting Onions 
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO MAKE MELTING ONIONS

Very simple ingredients are needed to make these onions and you only need four ingredients.

  • medium sized brown onions, skins on
  • olive oil
  • salt and pepper
  • salted butter
That's it, pure and simple!

Melting Onions 
HOW DO YOU MAKE MELTING ONIONS

Nothing could be easier to make.  With just a tiny bit of prep, these can be in the oven and roasting in no time at all.

First of all you will need six medium sized brown onions.  By brown onion I mean onions with brown skins.  You need to do a bit of prep on them, but not a lot.  

Wash them really well and dry them and then trim all those hairy bits from the root end.  You can just cut them off as close to the root as possible. You want essentially to make sure that the root end stays intact.

Melting Onions 
Although it is not essential you will also want to trim a bit from the stem end of the onion. I like to cut a thin slice from the top, discarding it. 

You then need to make a deep cross cut down the height of the onion towards the root end, only going down 3/4 of the way.

Make sure you don't cut them all the way through the bottom. You want them to stay together. 

Melting Onions  
You then rub them all over with some extra virgin olive oil. This is when you want an oil with some flavor, so extra virgin olive oil is perfect.  You will also be seasoning them with some salt and pepper.

I like to use fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Melting Onions 
Once you have rubbed and seasoned them you need to pop them into a roasting dish that is small enough to hold them all snugly in a single layer.  

This helps to keep them intact during the long roasting time.  I used a 6 inch cake tin because I was only roasting 3 onions today for testing purposes.

Melting Onions 

They are then covered tightly with some more foil and popped into a moderately hot oven. (375*F/190*C)   Initially they need to roast for a fairly long period of time. 70 minutes.

But essentially, they are cooking themselves. You can just walk away and get on with whatever else you need to be doing.

Melting Onions 
At the end of the that time you remove from the oven and add some butter.  Just plain salted butter.  

I cut it into slivers and inserted it into the cuts of the onions so that the flavor gets right in there.

Melting Onions 
Back into the oven they go for another 25 minutes, until that butter gets all nut brown and golden and the onions get to the point where they really do melt in the mouth. 

You will need to baste them a couple of times with the melted butter. Not a problem.  The end result is something that brings pure and simple taste satisfaction.

Melting Onions

You can also turn these delectable little morsels . . .  cheesy melted onions  . . . by adding some grated strong cheddar cheese and popping them back into the oven just long enough for the cheese to melt.

Cheese and onion are perfect partners and this makes for a fabulous finish for what is essentially one of the simplest and most delicious sides dishes you could ever put together. I highly recommend!

PS - Do caution your guests to peel off the skins prior to eating. The onions slip out of them very easily. This tiny bit of hassle is well worth it. Trust me on this.

Melting Onions

Melting Onions

Yield: 6 as a side dish (can easily be halved)
Author: Marie Rayner
Prep time: 8 MinCook time: 1 H & 32 MTotal time: 1 H & 40 M
These will be the star of the show! These delicious onions melt in your mouth.

Ingredients

  • 6 medium onions, skins left on
  • 1/4 cup (60ml) olive oil
  • salt and black pepper to taste
  • 1/4 cup (60g) salted butter

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 375*F/190*C/gas mark 5.  Have ready a baking dish that you can fit all the onions in upright, snugly.
  2. Carefully trim the bizarre bits from the root end of the onion, leaving the root and skins intact.  Trim a sliver from the other end as well. Make a cross cut into each onion 3/4 of the way down the height of the onion, taking care not to cut all the way to the bottom.
  3. Rub the onions all over with the oil, season with salt and pepper and then fit snugly into a small ovenproof dish.  Cover tightly with aluminum foil.
  4. Roast for 70 minutes.  Uncover.  Divide the butter amongst the onions, sliding it down into the centers.  Bake for a further 25 minutes, basting them with the melted butter a few times.  Serve at once.

Notes:

You can turn these into melting onions with cheese by adding some grated or cut strong cheddar (about 6 ounces) and stuffing it into the centers of each onion when done. Return to the oven just until the cheese has melted. Delicious!


You can also add herbs to these. Fresh thyme leaves are especially nice.

Did you make this recipe?
Tag @marierayner5530 on instagram and hashtag it #TheEnglishKitchen
Melting Onions
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com 

5 comments

  1. I make creamed onions often but I think this would be a nice change. They must smell so good as they are roasting. And they do look nice, too. I'll be making these soon. Happy October, Marie. Love and hugs, Elaine

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have never made creamed onions Elaine! I bet they are some good! Happy October to you as well. Love and hugs, xoxo

      Delete
  2. Oh yum! And so simple to do. I love roasted veggies and while I've roasted onions before, they were peeled, quartered and simply roasted along with a selection of other veggies. I'd not ever thought to do something like this, but what a great idea to add as a side dish.

    I've not seen that particular cookbook, but I have a couple other of her books and they are always really reliable recipes that I return to again and again.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I trust you on this. I adore onions. When I caramelize them for onion soup, I always do more than necessary just to have the onions to enjoy. This looks perfect -- what a great accompaniment to a wonderful dinner. This is a winner, Marie.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am like you Jeanie, I can eat onions anyways any time. Fried onions are my favorite. Thank you so much. I hope you will make and enjoy these! xoxo

      Delete

Thanks for stopping by. I love to hear from you so do not be shy!


BEFORE LEAVING A COMMENT OR RATING, ASK YOURSELF:
Did you make the recipe as directed? Recipe results are not guaranteed when changes have been made.

Is this comment helpful to other readers? Rude or hateful comments will not be approved. Remember that this website is run by a real person.

Are you here to complain about ads? Please keep in mind that I develop these recipes and provide them to you for free. Advertising helps to defray my cost of doing so, and allows me to continue to post regular fresh content.

Thanks so much for your understanding! I appreciate you!