How to Make Grilled Onions
If you’ve never made grilled onions before I think it’s safe to say that your world is about to change dramatically for the better. Grilling turns onions into something sweet and silky and sultry, the perfect accompaniment to just about anything else you will throw on the grill that day.
Best Onion for Grilling
Any onions will grill up nicely, but sweet onions, like Vidalia or Walla Walla, have more natural sugar in them, so they caramelize better. Watch that the heat doesn’t get too high which will cause the onions to burn. I also particularly love red or purple onions on the grill, which also have a nice level of sweetness, and add color to whatever you serve them with.
How to Grill Onions
Heat the grill to medium.
Peel the onions and cut them into thick slices, about ½-inch thick.
Brush the onions on both sides with olive oil. Sprinkle them with salt.
Place the onion slices on the grill (you can place them directly on the grill or on a vegetable grilling rack if you have one).
Grill the onions, covered, for 4 to 5 minutes until they get nice grill marks on the bottom and begin to soften, then flip them and grill for another 4 minutes or so. You should feel free to move them about the grill to cooler spots if they look like they are browning too quickly, before they become tender.
You can grill them for longer, if you want softer onions, just make sure to flip them as needed and not let the heat get too high – you want them lightly browned and caramelized, not too dark or crispy.
Remove from the grill and serve warm or at room temperature.
Grilled Onions: Grilling turns onions into something sweet and silky and sultry, the perfect accompaniment to just about anything else you will throw on the grill that day.
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Ways to Use Grilled Onions:
You can obviously serve them up plain, alongside a piece of grilled chicken or fish or meat, or as part of a larger grilled vegetable assortment.
You can also:
- Drizzle grilled onions with good balsamic vinegar
- Top a grilled steak or lamb chops or chicken breasts with grilled onions
- Use grilled onions on bruschetta and crostini
- Add them to salads, pastas, casseroles, grain salads, and other bowls
- Layer them in sandwiches or on top of burgers
- Include them in an antipasti platter
- Puree them into dips (try Roasted Red Pepper Sauce, Hummus and Cannellini Bean Dip with Lemon and Parmesan)
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Grilled Onions
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 onions (preferably sweet onions, like Vidalia or Walla Walla, or red or purple onions)
- 3 tbsps olive oil for brushing, approximately
- Kosher salt to taste
Directions
- Heat the grill to medium.
- Peel the onions and cut them into thick slices, about ½-inch thick.
- Brush the onions on both sides with olive oil. Sprinkle them with salt.
- Place the onion slices on the grill (you can place them directly on the grill or on a vegetable grilling rack if you have one).Grill the onions, covered, for 4 to 5 minutes until they get nice grill marks on the bottom and begin to soften, then flip them and grill for another 4 minutes or so. You should feel free to move them about the grill to cooler spots if they look like they are browning too quickly, before they become tender. You can grill them for longer, if you want softer onions, just make sure to flip them as needed and not let the heat get too high – you want them lightly browned and caramelized, not too dark or crispy.
- Remove from the grill and serve warm or at room temperature.
Nutrition Information
The nutrition values are provided as an estimate. It is not intended as a substitute for the advice of a qualified healthcare professional.
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