Tag: Onions

Fried Shallots

Posted on by twelfthdimensionkitchen

–Michael

Ingredients

  • 4 shallots, sliced into as thin of rings as you can manage
  • 1 Tbs cornstarch
  • Oil for frying

Directions

  1. Pour 3/4″ – 1″ canola oil in a stainless steel or cast iron pot. Heat to 250°F.
  2. Toss the shallots and cornstarch. Start with less cornstarch and keep adding until the shallots feel dry.
  3. Divide the shallots into manageable batches (the amount per batch will vary depending on the diameter of your frying pot). One batch at a time, drop the shallots into the oil. Let them fry until they pick up some color from the oil (you may need to pull them out to be able to tell). Transfer them to a paper towel lined plate. Repeat with remaining batches.
  4. Increase oil temperature to 350°F. Line your plate with a clean paper towel.
  5. Again in batches, place the par-fried shallots into the oil for 15-20 seconds, agitating constantly.
  6. Let dry.
    Notes:
  • When mixing in the cornstarch, I recommend using your hands, as this will help break the rings apart and help coat everything evenly.
  • If too much cornstarch is added, all it does is waste the cornstarch and create a sad layer of debris in the bottom of the pot. I call it sad because, no matter how much it felt like sand, I couldn’t make even a single sand castle out of it.
  • Between the two rounds of frying, I pat the shallots dry to remove excess grease, like with bacon. I think this helps them get a bit firmer before their second dunk, which helps the crispiness in the long run. I’m still experimenting with this theory.

Frying is very new to me because I previously only had nonstick pots. Now, I’m not advertising that people should have weddings just because of the opportunity to get more kitchen stuff, but I can’t deny that it’s been a major boon, and it’s quite impressive the number of times I’ve heard some variation on, “The true proof that you got married is your nice KitchenAid mixer.” Anyway, my point is that I now have a dutch oven and I’ve been using it to fry some stuff. Like these shallots.

Never fried anything? The shallot slices are relatively small and the oil temperatures are relatively low, so the chances of splashing, spitting, and burning are relatively low. Never used shallots (or not sure what they taste like because they always disappear amidst other ingredients)? Here, they’re the leading role!

These little beauties are a great addition to lots of things, whether looking for the flavor, a bit of crisp, or a minuscule “cheat” item in your diet.

This recipe is a work in progress, and updates will be posted as they’re discovered. Current goal: get them crispier. (Please post any suggestions in the comments below!)

Roasted Onions & Sweet Peppers

Posted on by twelfthdimensionkitchen

-Michael

Ingredients

  • 1 yellow or sweet onion, sliced
  • 5-10 sweet mini peppers, sliced (will depend on size of onion/peppers)
  • 1 Tbs olive oil

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
  2. Peel the onion and cut it into thin, short slices, about 1/2″ long.
  3. Cut the peppers into similarly sized slices, removing all seeds.
  4. Toss in a bowl with the olive oil. Once fully coated, spread in a single layer on a baking sheet.
  5. Bake in the oven 25-35 minutes.

The number of peppers you need will vary on the size of the onion, the size of the peppers, and personal preference. You’ll want somewhere between a 1:1 and 2:1 ratio of onions:peppers. I tend to lean toward the 2:1 ratio. Shocker.

Do not use too much oil. The the point of the oil is to add a hint of flavor and to keep the onions and peppers from sticking to the baking sheet. Too much oil will keep them from crisping. You want some regular looking onions/peppers, some with crisped edges, and a few that are at least 50% char. (This is also why you shouldn’t pause to stir them at all while they’re roasting.) Variety is the spice of onions & peppers.

These don’t have to be perfect. They don’t have to be sliced. I like to get everything I can off the top of the peppers, so those bits wind up looking more diced than sliced. It really doesn’t matter–they’ll all be roasted and beautiful and delicious.

As stated elsewhere, I don’t use as much salt as most people. If you want to add salt to the onions and peppers, do so when tossing them with the oil. I don’t recommend it, though, unless you plan on eating these on their own; otherwise, save the salt for seasoning whatever dish you’re adding these to.

There Will Be Onion

Posted on by twelfthdimensionkitchen

-Michael

We. Love. Onions. And garlic. We’ll try to behave when we put recipes on here, but we can’t make many promises. If you look at a recipe and think, “Wow that’s a lot of onion,” feel free to use less. Also feel free to contemplate how much better your life could be if you loved onions more. If you look at a recipe and think, “That seems like a reasonable amount of garlic,” then welcome to the club, but you should know that we probably actually use more when we make it for ourselves. Sure, the point of cooked mushrooms is the mushrooms. But, ya know, sometimes I just really want my mushrooms to be 50% garlic. (Luckily, my husband loves garlic just as much as I do, so he never exiles me to the opposite end of the apartment).