Newsflash. I do the same thing as the beautiful Nigella: cook loads of onions in advance and freeze. And for the same reason.
And the one thing I feel utterly beaten by when I'm really tired is the idea of peeling and chopping onions. I don't actually find it difficult, but the thought is a daunting one. So, when I have time to spare (usually when I'm avoiding something I should be doing), I peel, chop, and fry onions slowly and gently to a gorgeous mush that can be frozen in cubes and thawed to form the basis for a stew or sauce as needed.
Let me add that I am even lazier than Nigella: I freeze en masse (rather than in cubes)and break off chunks when needed. Just this morning, I made a soup that began with me breaking off a chunk of onions and blithely tossing it into a pot.
Oh yeah, even lazier part 2: I usually do this in the slow cooker (mush) or oven (roasted).
Oh yeah, and it's frugal too if you buy onions when they are cheap (like last week when they were a dollar for three pounds).
Since at least 75% of all recipes (scientific study conducted by moi) begin: saute a chopped onion, this little tip will save you hours and hours each year.
And, since I'm only me and who cares what I do: I present Nigella as your role model. Do what she does.
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6 comments:
What a good idea; I think I'll give it a try. I just bought a big bag of onions at Costco yesterday!
I don't really find chopping and sauteing onions to be that daunting. I usually manage to do one or two in the time it takes the pan and the oil to heat. And normally most everything else I'm cooking goes into the pan after the onions & garlic is done, so it's no big deal. However, I still think this is a great idea and it would make lovely fried onions available to go into soups and such.
@BlueJean--You will be amazed by how much time you save.
@Shelley--Well, they're not as good as pan friend onions, so if you don't mind the process...
Awesome. My problem with onions is that they go bad rather quickly. I don't know if this is because we live in the south, or if our stores have exceptionally bad produce, or what, but I have had terrible luck with onions ever since we moved to Virginia. Cooking them in advance like this would solve that problem.
Good idea, however, a mush and a sauté will yield different results, visually- no problem for a soup but not as appealing for a sauce. I try to get someone else to chop raw onions (and cry).
@PC--Hope it works for you.
@Duchesse--90% of my cooking seems to involve soup, now that I think of it, so the onions are fine.
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