Caramelized Onion Chutney makes boring grilled cheese pop, is the perfect addition to your cheese board, and can be a great gift option for your foodie friend.
This is the kind of recipe that is always good to have in your fridge!
Why this recipe is for you:
- You can make it as a gift to your loved ones;
- You can impress your friends by adding it to a cheese/charcuterie board;
- It pretty much improves everything it touches, from grilled cheese to dahl;
- This chutney keeps for a long time in your fridge, even longer if you know how to water-bath;
- It has less sugar than most onion chutneys: just ⅔ cup of brown sugar.
What's a chutney
Defining it in a very simple way, a chutney is a kind of savory jam. There are some differences between jam and chutney, though:
- In chutneys, vinegar and sugar are used together for preservation, while in jams sometimes only sugar is added for that;
- Jams are usually made with fruit, while chutneys can be made with both, or only vegetables (like this onion chutney);
- Chutneys are always flavored with lots of spices and even chili peppers, different from jams where the taste of the fruit alone is most predominant.
This onion chutney is a vegan, gluten-free, savory condiment made of red onions, brown sugar, vinegar and spices. It’s thick, has a dark caramel color and a sticky jam-like consistency. It carries the complexity of brown sugar combined with the right amount of tartness.
How to make it
It’s really easy, I swear! The most time-consuming part is to peel and slice the onions.
After peeling, you can just place everything in a heavy-bottom pan and let time do its magic, if you're feeling lazy to wait for the onions to caramelize.
If you don’t have a pan with a thicker bottom or a dutch oven, it’s best to stir from time to time to check if the bottom is not burning. Do it every 10 minutes.
Once it’s ready, place the onion chutney in jars and let it cool before storing in the fridge.
If you prefer, you can opt to can this recipe and store outside your fridge while the jar remains closed.
What to eat with it
You can have it hot or cold, and it goes well with grilled cheese, soups, even pizza!
Try it with my homemade baguette bread or a pumpkin brioche and add some brie – you won’t regret it!
For me, this is the perfect chutney to have with cheese.
This onion chutney is also fantastic for burgers, both meat and plant-base. Try combining it with goat cheese and salted mushrooms for a fantastic hamburger.
I find this recipe essential for anyone who loves to add a hint of sweetness to a savory dish.
The combination of wine with balsamic vinegar gives this chutney the exact amount of tartness: for an onion lover, it’ll be hard to stop eating.
About this recipe
Yes, this recipe is vegan.
You can substitute wine for vinegar if you like. Replace the wine with ⅔ cup of red wine vinegar and ⅓ cup of water. It will have a more sour taste.
Storing
You can have it as soon as it finishes cooking, but hear me out and wait for it to cool. If possible, store this chutney in two jars and leave one resting for a whole week.
After some time, the flavors are more well developed, and the taste gets even better.
Red onion chutney will keep in the fridge for up to 6 months.
You can water-bath if you want/know how to. I’ve never done that, so mine stays in the fridge.
More savory spread and dips
Easy Caponata (No Tomatoes)
Vegan Guacamole
Caramelized Onion Chutney
This caramelized onion chutney has a dark caramel color and a sticky jam-like consistency. You can have it hot or cold, and it goes well with grilled cheese, burgers, and even pizza!
Ingredients
- about 8 medium red onions
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 4 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- ⅔ cup brown sugar, packed
- ⅓ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 cup red wine
- 1 tbsp mustard seeds (or ½ tbsp mustard powder)
Instructions
- Peel and cut the onions into thin half-moon slices.
- In a large heavy-bottom pan, heat the olive oil and add the onions, bay leaves, black pepper and salt.
- Cook over low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent it from burning. After this time, the onions should be soft, translucent, and reduced in size by about half.
- Add the remaining ingredients: brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, wine, and mustard seeds (or powder). Cook for 1 hour, or until most of the liquid has reduced. Stir occasionally to check if it isn’t sticking to the bottom of the pan. The chutney should be thick and have a dark caramel color.
- Place into sterilized jars. Keep it well closed in the fridge.
Notes
You can skip steps 2 and 3 if you're in a hurry: just add all ingredients and let everything cook in low heat for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Although the time will be the same, you won't need to worry about stirring.
You can substitute red onions for yellow onions.
Use ½ tablespoon of ground black pepper for a less peppery outcome.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2 jarsServing Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 740Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 18gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 1207mgCarbohydrates: 112gFiber: 7gSugar: 84gProtein: 7g
Nutrition information is an estimate only and will vary depending on the substitutions made and/or brands used.
Kirsty Coddington
Okay so I made this once before and loved it but this time I think I went wrong somewhere as it’s come out very brown and like way too peppery it’s either the pepper or the wine but it certainly does t taste sweet. Might try putting it back in the pan and adding some more sugar!
Milk and Pop
Hey Kirsty,
Sorry that happened! Maybe you used smaller onions this time? Was the brown sugar packed? I'm making it again and weighting all ingredients for a more precise outcome. Hope adding more brown sugar solved the problem - it usually works!
Cheers!
Graham
The recipe is tempting, but there is something I do not understand: in step (3), "stirring from 5 to 5". I looked up "stirring from 5 to 5" and this was the only find. Can you please explain the meaning of the phrase?
Thanks in anticipation,
Graham
Milk and Pop
Hi Graham!
Stir every 5 minutes to prevent burning spots. Hope you try this recipe, it's one of my favorites!
Cheers!
Sara
Are you removing the bay leaves before storing? Thank you!!!
Milk and Pop
Hi Sara! I store this chutney with the bay leaves on. Cheers!
Sandy
Made this recipe exactly as written. Oh my goodness, I was expecting it to be good, but it’s great. On a scale of 1 to 10... somewhere around an 11.5. Making more to gift at Christmas. Thank you for what is going to become a staple in my refrigerator.
Milk and Pop
You comment just made my day, Sandy! This is my favorite recipe, and it's so good to know I'm not the only one in love with it 😉
Tigerlily
Hi. Have you tried making this in Instant Pot slow cooker mode? I'm debating to try it the Instapot vs. stove. Looking forward to making this as I am unable to finde this in the states at all. My ploughman's cheese sandwich is missing the chutney!
Milk and Pop
Hi, sorry for taking so long to answer, I had a couple of crazy busy weeks! No, I never tried making this recipe in an Instant Pot, but I believe it would work just fine. Just keep checking if the bottom is not burning - never even used a Instant Pot (I need to change that ASAP) so idk if that's a possibility. Yeah, I've never found onion chutney in Canada also! Cheers!
JJ
Can I use yellow onions instead of red onions? Thanks heaps!
Milk and Pop
Hi JJ, yellow onions are also great for this recipe! Cheers!
JJ
Can I use yellow onions instead of red onions? Thanks heaps.
Sam
Oh this chutney looks amazing Tati! I had never thought to make my own, but you totally inspired me to try. Thanks for sharing!
Milk and Pop
I'm so glad I could inspire you, Sam! Hope you like this chutney as much as I do!
LaKita
This red onion chutney looks so tasty and it would go perfect as a cheese board option!
Milk and Pop
It is, Lakita! It's always on mine on wine and cheese nights!
Amanda
I am so glad you shared this! We love having wine and cheese nights for dinner, and I was looking for a new spread for something a little different -- so easy and so delicious! Can't wait to make this again.
Milk and Pop
I'm so glad you liked it, Amanda!
Chandice Probst
This is so perfect for so many dishes thank you so much!
Milk and Pop
Thank you, Chandice!
Anna
I love homemade onion chutney! It's so easy to make and the flavour is always so much better than any shop- bought one! Perfect with some cheese and crackers or on a bit of toast. Your version looks and sounds utterly delicious!
Milk and Pop
I love it too, Anna. It's fantastic with lots of things, right? To be sincere I never tried a store-bought one, but I guess it won't be better than a homemade! 😀
Jen
So easy to make, the hard part is waiting for it to cool. Spooning all over burgers this summer!
Milk and Pop
Definitely the hardest part! But give it a week in the refrigerator, the flavors this chutney develops are FANTASTIC!
Jacque Hastert
This sounds amazing and I love how simple it is to throw together. Thank you for sharing this with us.
Milk and Pop
Thank you for reading, Jacque!
Amy Liu Dong
To be honest, I have never tried to make this kind of recipe ever but it's really amazing that all ingredients are easy to find and it is so easy to make. I also love to hear that you can this as additional flavor to other food/dish..
Milk and Pop
They are! I love to have some chutney in my fridge, you can improve so many recipes with it!
Kate
This looks like such a delicious topping for so many different things! This would definitely not last in my fridge for 6 months haha, 🙂
Milk and Pop
Hahaha, it's super hard to last that much here, Kate! 😀