# I'm trying Crockpot Carmelized Onions today



## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

I found this recipe online. I placed my Crockpot outside so as to avoid an overwhelming onion smell inside!

Under a pile of onions is 1/4 cup of butter, cubed and 1/4 cup olive oil. The recipe calls for 6 med size onions.

I used three medium-to-large plus one really large onion. Recipe also calls for 2-3 fresh thyme sprigs but I don't have those. Plus a pinch of salt.

The recipe says you can do them on high or on low. Of course all CP's act differently so I am trying them on high first. Stir every hour. In the end if they seem to have too much moisture, take the lid off for a while. Stir more often towards the end.

I was going to take pictures but I forgot on here you have to have them hosted somewhere and I don't want to bother with that so I'll be very descriptive.

I am thinking hubby will eat these so fast I'll never have to preserve them. I will see how they come out and if he loves them, I'll try canning some in really small jars.

There was also a Carmelized Onion Bread recipe that uses a bottle of beer, but that's later.....


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## Annsni (Oct 27, 2006)

Definitely let me know how they come out!! My family is addicted to carmelized onions. If they get cooked, they become a meal. LOL


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

I sure will! I will say I am very glad I set them outside. WHEW. You can smell them all the way down the block! 

So far I am finding, that on high I am needing to stir them every half hour.


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

Well it's been what, about an hour and a half and the onions are sort of tan colored now and about half the volume. In addition, I have seriously ----*d off a fly. It wants so badly to get to the delicious smell, but it's too hot. Every time I go stir he flies around me and I swear I hear little cuss words.........


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

Ok, I got a photobucket set up, here they are to begin:










Here they are at about and hour and a half:










Sorry the pics are so big, I resized them to "small", but will play with a smaller custom setting if my computer lets me!


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## partndn (Jun 18, 2009)

mmmmmmm....
Now when they are finished, do you can them? what process?


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

partndn I don't know that I'll be able to, I think hubby will eat them all up!

If it yields a lot less than I was thinking it would, I will make twice this amount next time and then I will try canning them, and would use pressure canning as they are onions. I would prefer to freeze them but I doubt that would be very good..........

If they are great canned, I will run both of my crockpots and do a big enough batch to justify getting the canner out!


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

Ok, a couple more hours gone by. They seem to almost be at a standstill. I don't see much change in them when I go stir them but I do notice a different smell (it's delicious). They seem very moist so for a half hour I will leave the lid off and see if they cook down a bit quicker.


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

Update - leaving lid off has reduced the moisture a lot and they seem darker now too! Taste of the "sauce" part is sweet. 

I will keep updating. I am making some Garlic Pepper Potato rolls for hubby to put these onions onto tonight. I'm not fond of onions myself so I sure hope they are good.


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## Ardie/WI (May 10, 2002)

I can almost smell them because they look so delicious!

I too could eat a whole batch of them!


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

Hi Ardie!

Ok, I think they're done. I'm not really sure as I think I maybe tried carmelizing onions in a saucepan 20 years ago. They smell sooooo good.

It yielded 3 cups of onions, so for canning I will probably do a double batch. Not sure how fast he'll go thru them but I'm thinking pretty quickly!

Thanks for hanging in with me, I've never done this before and it was quite an enjoyable experience if you don't count cutting them in the beginning.


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## Packedready (Mar 29, 2011)

I bet you could make french onion soup with these onions


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

Packedready great idea! Hubby loved them and the rolls were great too he said. He had seconds on the rolls covered in the onions! Some of the ingredients in the rolls are black pepper, mashed potatoes and garlic, and were brushed with milk before going in to the oven. They were also a new recipe so I'm glad he liked them.


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## siletz (Oct 5, 2010)

What a great idea! Hubby and I both love carmelized onions but hate waiting on them. I would love to have some canned ones sitting on the shelf!


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## Karen (Apr 17, 2002)

siletz said:


> What a great idea! Hubby and I both love carmelized onions but hate waiting on them. I would love to have some canned ones sitting on the shelf!


I was thinking the same thing. Talk about a convenience food!

We love a low-fat zucchini and caramelized onion quiche I make frequently. Would be so convenient to just open a jar and pour them into the quiche batter.


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

I know, right? I am not sure how many pints or half pints 3 cups finished onions would fill. I will be doing this again and will try to remember to update the thread with the yields.


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## netskyblue (Jul 25, 2012)

I do them on the stove, then can them. Half pints are PLENTY big for me, I tend to only use them for seasoning other things. I would have liked to do some 4oz jars the last time, as that's about the size I need for making one dish, but mine were all in use 

ETA: I top them with chicken broth in the jar. Add less onion and more liquid than you think you should, the onion absorbs a lot of liquid, and you'll be left with lots of space (kind of like with beans).


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## Nyxchik (Aug 14, 2012)

Wow- just used my first jar of these and OMG they are to die for. I mixed them with a jar of marinara I canned this summer, with a handful of sliced black olives over whole wheat spaghetti. The onions gave the sauce some major oomph, a 10 minute dinner that tasted all-day good. Glad someone warned about the butter settling at the top- they did look a little weird when I opened them. But once I poured them out it was obviously butter pieces. I will definitely need to can more of these... my few jars won't last long. Thanks Homesteader for the recipe! ~nyx


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## Annsni (Oct 27, 2006)

How did you can them?


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## Nyxchik (Aug 14, 2012)

Annsni- I used Canning Granny's instructions:
http://canninggranny.blogspot.com/2011/05/canning-caramelized-onions.html
~nyx


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

Nyxchik you're welcome! Did you do them in a crockpot?


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## dkhern (Nov 30, 2012)

love onions im going to try this i like to pickle just put slices into pickle jar juice and wait a few day


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## mpennington (Dec 15, 2012)

Oh! What a great idea. I carmelize onions in the crockpot, but freeze them. Wouldn't have thought to can them. I'm moving as many things as possible from freezer to shelf stable. Less hassle during hurricane season. I'll try to find some more 4 ounce jars. Only bought one case last fall; just to see if I liked them. 

My recipe from Everything Healthy Slow Cooker Cookbookcalls for 4 pounds of Vidalia or other sweet onions, 3 tablespoons butter (I use 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil) and 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar. Cook on low, covered, in 4 quart slow cooker for 10 hours. If wet after 10 hours, turn up to high and cook uncovered for an additional 30 minutes or until the liquid evaporates.


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## Nyxchik (Aug 14, 2012)

Yes I used the crockpot. I cooked them longer than I meant to- the automatic cut off didn't work overnight, so they got pretty brown. I was afraid they were going to turn to mush with the long canning time, but they were fine. Soft, definitely, but fine. Flavor is fabulous. ~nyx


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## Vosey (Dec 8, 2012)

Finally trying these! They've been on my mind forever. Crockpot is going out on the porch. Harvested onions today and used a few monsters that were not going to keep well.


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## Melesine (Jan 17, 2012)

ooo another use for my pressure canner! I think I'll pick up a big bag of onions from Costco this week and do a batch. 

You can also caramelize onions in the oven in a roasting pan.


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

What fun to see my old thread re-visited!


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## moldy (Mar 5, 2004)

I do these a roaster-full at a time. Oh, my! So good. These and the bread-and-butter pickles with jalapenos are the only things I ran out of last year.


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