Do you like pairing honey with cheese? Well, I propose a valid alternative, namely the sweet-tasting golden onion jam, which, like honey, can accompany very aged cheeses, semi-aged cheeses, meat or fish roasts, but it can also be enjoyed alone on bruschetta. Onions are used both in cooking – for the aroma and flavor they give to all dishes – and in medicine, for their therapeutic properties. If you can find it, I recommend using the famous “Montoro copper onion,” listed among the traditional products of Campania, with a thousand properties, not just organoleptic. Its taste is sweet, aromatic, it holds up well in cooking, and can be enjoyed both cooked and raw. Among other things, it contains “prostaglandins,” a natural substance that helps lower blood pressure. I always use it in the kitchen, to flavor, aromatize, and “characterize” the dishes that require onion among the ingredients.
If, on the other hand, you love the sweet and sour taste, try the red onion jam in my recipe
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 1 Hour 15 Minutes
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
Ingredients
- 2.2 lbs Golden Onions
- 2.5 cups Sugar
- 4 leaves Bay Leaves
- 1 cup Water
- 1 tsp Fine Salt
Preparation
1) Clean the onions by removing the thin golden outer skin, cut them into wedges or thin slices, whichever is most convenient for you, and place them in a large pot with the sugar, bay leaves, and water, stir and cover. Let it marinate overnight. The next day, thanks to the sugar, the onions will have released their vegetation liquid.
2) Start cooking our jam on the small burner, over medium heat, with the lid on, stirring occasionally.
As soon as it starts to boil, lower the heat, place a wooden spoon between the pot and the lid to leave a crack, and let it cook over low heat for about 40/50 minutes, stirring often.
3) The final consistency should be less dense than jam. To check if our onion jam is ready, pour a bit onto a plate and wait about ten seconds; if it slides off rather slowly, it’s ready. Otherwise, let it cook for a few more minutes, testing again on the plate, but do not extend the cooking times indicated too much, otherwise, you will end up with a caramelized and hard jam that doesn’t ruin the excellent flavor but can’t be spread (this happened to me the first time I made it!!!).
4) Immediately fill the already sterilized jars up to one centimeter from the rim (we can remove the bay leaves, but I leave them inside the jam), seal them tightly, and immediately turn them upside down to allow the vacuum to form.
Let the jam rest for a week, to allow the flavors to mature and express themselves at their best.
Extra idea. If we want to give our onion jam an extra touch, add 2 cloves and 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric. It’s amazing.
