CookEat Recipe
Braised Small Onions
Whole small onions browned in butter and finished in meat jus lightly thickened with butter and flour.
Method
Steps
Step 1
Gather the ingredients: 500 g small white onions; 30 g butter: 25 g for browning and 5 g for thickening; 5 g plain flour; 150 ml prepared meat jus; Salt and black pepper; Water for boiling.
Step 2
Peel the onions and trim their tops and root ends, keeping enough of each root base intact to hold the onion together. Boil in salted water for 10 minutes, then drain well.
Step 3
Heat 25 g butter in a broad pan until it turns a light hazelnut colour. Add the onions in one layer, season lightly with salt and pepper and brown gently on one side. Turn carefully and brown the other side, about 8–10 minutes total.
Step 4
Add the meat jus, cover partly and simmer for about 15–20 minutes, until the onions are tender. Knead the flour into the remaining 5 g butter, stir small pieces of this mixture into the sauce and simmer gently for at least 5 minutes until smooth and lightly thickened. Shake the pan to coat the onions and serve hot. Add a small splash of water if the sauce reduces too much.
Step 5
For the pale broth-braised variation, replace the main butter, flour and meat jus with 20 g butter, 30 g prosciutto in one small slice, 30 g unsalted pork fatback in very thin slices, 150 ml prepared meat broth and a small tied bouquet of 2 parsley stalks, 1 thyme sprig and 1 bay leaf. Boil the same quantity of onions for 10 minutes, transfer to clean cold water and drain.
Step 6
Put the onions in a small ovenproof casserole with the herb bundle, prosciutto, 15 g butter and broth. Add pepper and only a little salt. Cover the onions with the very thin fatback slices, then lay a fitted piece of baking paper greased with the remaining 5 g butter on top. Cover with a lid and bake at 180°C for about 25–35 minutes, until the onions are tender and the pork reaches 71°C. Remove the paper and herb bundle. If needed, lift out the onions briefly and reduce the cooking juices, then return them and serve hot with the reduced jus. Allow about 70 minutes for this variation.
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