How can I make a large amount of caramelized onions for a french onion soup?
I am looking to make a large amount of French Onion soup (for ~16 servings), and rather than spend hours in front of a skillet (as I would have to do several batches), I am looking for an easier way:
could I bake a large amount (~20 onions) in an oven to achieve a similar effect?
should I put them in a pressure cooker?
are there even better alternatives?
In particular if anyone has advice as far as what else or details as to how to make it work (temperatures for ovens, convection/broil, pressure to cook at, etc. (I already read this, which while it would help, aims mostly at speeding it up & not doing a large amount which is more along the lines of what I am thinking) I would be interested, as I don't want to experiment with a large quantity of onions several times in order to get it right
P.S. - I am using yellow onions, although I'd imagine this would apply to all onions
P.S. #2 - what do restaurants do?
Best Answer
You can caramelize onions in the oven to do large quantities. This isn't less effort, and it actually takes longer, but it does allow you to do really large quantities; I did 20lbs of caramelized onions for one Polish dinner I was serving this way. Since I haven't been able to find a website with this method, here it is:
- heat oven to 325F/160C
- fill a hotel pan or baking pan with sliced onions to a depth of about 3/4"/2cm
- toss the sliced onions with vegetable oil or melted butter and a little salt (and optionally a little sugar)
- cook, uncovered, in oven for 1 hour to 90 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.
The reason for the 2cm depth of onions is to keep them from burning in the oven, which they tend to do if spread thinner. Also, if you have a gas rather than electric oven, you may need to add a little water occasionally to prevent burning.
Althernately, Kenji of Serious Eats has a formula for cooking caramelized onions over high heat, and thus cooking each batch faster, without losing flavor. This would allow you to jump through several batches.
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How do you caramelize onions in bulk?
In your largest heavy-bottomed pot over low heat, warm the oil. Dump in the onions and salt and stir to combine. Cover the pot until the onions begin softening, lifting the lid and stirring every 5 minutes, at least 30 minutes. Uncover and cook the onions, stirring every 20 to 30 minutes, for about 6 hours.How do you caramelize onions for soup?
In a large dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, thyme, salt, pepper and sugar and turn to medium low. Cook for 50-60 minutes, until nicely browned, stirring often and scraping up browned bits from the bottom of the pot.. If onions start to stick, reduce the heat.How brown should caramelized onions be for French onion soup?
As long as they're a nice dark brown and still soft and translucent, they'll surely have the nice sweet finish you're looking for. So there you have it! Caramelized onions are so easy to make and an incredible way to add flavor to whatever it is you're eating.French Onion Soup | Basics with Babish
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Answer 2
Use a pressure cooker if you have one. I saw this in modernist cuisine but the above mentioned kenji (legend) has a discussion. The total cooking time is under 30 minutes.
Answer 3
Caramelizing onions works great in a slow cooker. Slice 5 extra large sweet onions in half, then in fairly thin half moon slices. Place them in a 6 qt (5.7 liters) slow cooker with a splash of water for 12 to 15 hours. Like magic they turn brown. Stir regularly after they have cooked several hours to even out the browning process. This also produces a small amount of onion stock which will go well in your soup.
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