Recipe from Olives and Oranges: Recipes & Flavor Secrets from Italy, Spain, Cyprus and Beyond by Sara Jenkins and Mindy Fox, 2008. Reprinted with permission from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved 2021.
This is chef Sara Jenkins’ play on cipollini in agrodolce, or “sweet-and-sour onions.” Browning the onions first caramelizes them, and the orange juice adds both tang, more commonly supplied by vinegar, and a little sweetness. She likes to use red torpedo onions because they’re nicely mild and slightly sweet, and because their rich color, once cooked, makes a gorgeous contrast to the burnt hue of the reduced orange juice, but you can also use small red onions, cipollini, or even pearl onions, leaving the smallest varieties whole. Enjoy these as they are, spoon them onto crostini for an easy cocktail snack, or top fish or game with them for a delicious main course.
Makes
4 servingsIngredients
- 1 ¼ pounds red torpedo or other small-to-medium red onions
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Medium-coarse sea salt
- 1 cup fresh orange juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 bay leaf preferably fresh
- Piment d’Espelette or another crushed dried red chile pepper
Instructions
- Keeping root ends intact so that pieces will hold together, peel and quarter onions. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add onions, cut side down, sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon salt, and reduce heat to medium. Cook until cut sides are golden, about 4 minutes per side.
- Add orange juice, lemon juice, and bay leaf; reduce heat to low and simmer until juices are thickened and almost completely reduced to a glaze, about 30 minutes. Sprinkle with chile pepper and a little more salt, and serve warm.
