Ingredients

• See Preparation for the full story on Caramelised Onions.

Preparation

You would have to ask the question. Could this be the ultimate flavour weapon: Proper Caramelised Onions.

A recipe flavour weapon that is salt free, healthy, totally convenient, inexpensive and blessed with the most awesome aroma.

Terrific. But the onions must be properly caramelised and for this you could have a small problem - your time.

That is, you will need to set aside around one hour to do the job. Properly.

Method To start. Peel and cut 6 - 8 onions into half moon shapes (this will give a good quantity to freeze) Then in a medium sized pot with a lid, add 2 tablespoons olive oil then, when hot, add the onions. Stir and cover for 10 minutes until the onions have softened.

Continue occasional, gentle stirring for another 45 minutes, Check all is well in the pot, maybe lower the heat a little and add a touch of water if you feel it is needed.

Changing colour and flavour At this time you will be rewarded to see the colour of the onions changing, giving a lovely portent of the great flavour to come and an aroma that is filling your kitchen.

And you will now note that you and the onions have been working together for an enjoyable 50 minutes !

Next, remove the lid and continue with the stirring. You have now arrived at the fun bit.

With a wooden spoon, start scraping the caramelised sugars from the bottom of the pan back into the onion mix. A rewarding thing to do.

That's it. Your time with the onions is now over. For your efforts, you will have created a true flavour Umami.

And by freezing this wonderous mix into small containers you will have a very convenient, time saving supply for future recipes.

Suggested uses are many. Think of Onion Soup of course but also as a topping for a BBQ Steak and Meatballs, home made Pizza and Flatbreads, favourite Casseroles and a sensational Onion Tart or Onion Soup.