Warning: tried to caramelize onions in a stainless pan last night without enough butter

I was making French onion soup from scratch on Tuesday and thought I could cut back on the butter to save some calories. The onions basically welded themselves to the bottom of the pan after 10 minutes and I had to scrub for 20 minutes to get the crust off. Anyone else just accept that you need a full stick of butter for good caramelized onions?

3 comments

3 Comments

sean_walker459h agoMost Upvoted

Three tablespoons of butter for six medium onions is where I land, actually. The thing people get wrong (including me for years) is that low heat and patience matter way more than the fat quantity. I had the same welding problem until I started using a 3:1 onion to butter ratio by weight and keeping it on medium-low with a lid for the first 15 minutes to sweat them. The butter is mostly just for flavor and initial coating, not for preventing sticking. The real trick is stirring every 5 minutes and deglazing with a splash of water or stock when you see that brown fond building up too fast.

sean_walker457h agoMost Upvoted

That ratio sounds a bit high on the butter side, actually.

irisg577h ago

@sean_walker45 knows what's up. The lid trick for the first bit makes a huge difference. I do about the same ratio but I'll add a pinch of salt early to draw the moisture out faster. Also, don't crowd the pan too much or they'll steam instead of caramelize.