Kitchen Essentials

Caramelizing

Flavor does not appear out of thin air. It must be developed. One of the easiest ways to develop deep flavors is to caramelize the sugars that are in most foods. Due to a complex chemical reaction (called a Maillard reaction) the heat of cooking and the sugars of food can turn into flavor with a little bit of coaxing from you.

About the only thing you can not caramelize is water. But if you haven't tried this essential of the kitchen before, let's start with something simple and practical: caramelized onions. Caramelized onions are a boon to a cook. Top hamburgers with them, use them in soups, or as a sprinkle over a bed of cold Asian style noodles, they are an easy, cheap way to boost your cooking chops.

Start with the onion. It has to ends that I refer to as the neck and the butt. This is what I call the neck.
This is the butt.
We are going to slice half moons of this onion because we want larger pieces of onion for the finished product. Ohhh, this post will double as a recipe for French Onion Soup. So cut off the neck and butt end. Your onion now resembles a rough approximation of the earth. With the butt and root end representing the poles. Place it with the pole side down (either north or south you pick) and cut it along a line of longitude. I like the prime meridian.

Now peel off the outer skin of each half and place cut end down on cutting board. Slice onion into thin strips along the lines of latitude starting at one pole and working through the equator to the opposite pole. Do this for both the Eastern and Western Hemisphere.

Dont worry, you will get better, but for now anything thinner than a two quarters thickness will do. Repeat on 5 other onions. Try not to cry, Tebow.

Now heat a thick pot or your dutch oven on medium heat. When pan is hot add a knob of butter and a two second glug of olive oil. Place onions in pan and stir. Add some salt and pepper. The salt will draw out moisture from the onions which helps caramelize them.

The goal here is to cook slowly like making a roux. Keep vigilante make sure the onions do not burn or cook to fast. Stir every few minutes; it will take a good amount of time, just be patient. When the onions are good and brown you are finished. They will keep in a container in the fridge for a week or so. They hardly ever last that long in my house though.

To finish making soup, add a few cloves of chopped garlic, some thyme, cayenne (to help combat the sweetness), a few dashes of Worcestershire Sauce, a bay leaf, a cup of red wine, and 6 cups of beef, chicken, or veal stock. Bring to a boil, lower heat, let simmer for thirty minutes. Top with cheesy croutons if so desired.