Ingredients

• 500g x Medium brown onions - sliced in half moon shapes

• 4 x Tablespoons olive oil (reserve half)

• 3 x Garlic cloves - finely diced

• 2 x Tablespoons butter

• 2 x Teaspoons of caraway seeds

• 2 x Teaspoons sherry vinegar or balsamic vinegar

• 1/2 x Cup red wine

• 1 x Teaspoon brown sugar

• 2 x Teaspoons dried thyme

• 1 x Whole bay leaf

Preparation

Method In a medium hot pan add 3 tablespoons olive oil and the butter then over a medium heat, add the onions cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionaly. Cover the pan during this time.

Next, over a low heat, add the garlic, thyme, caraway seeds, salt to your taste, sugar, bay leaf. Continue cooking, uncovered and stirring for a further 20 mintes so the onions become dark and very soft picking up all the wonderful flavours.

Now add the wine, vinegar and 4 tablespoons of water and continue stirring over a low heat for 20 minutes until the liquid has evaporated - add a little bit more water if it drys out too soon

You might like to note that you and the onions have now been working together for an enjoyable 50 minutes !

Taste the confit and add a little more sugar/vinegar to achieve your preferred balance. This is important. When the confit has cooled remove the bay leaf and add in the remaining oil.

With a wooden spoon, start scraping the caramelised sugars from the bottom of the pan back into the onion mix. A rewarding thing to do.

That's it. Your time with the onions is now over. For your efforts, you will have created a true flavour Umami.

And by freezing this wonderous mix into small containers you will have a very convenient, time saving supply for future recipes.

Suggested uses are many. Think of Onion Soup of course but also as a topping for a BBQ Steak and Meatballs, Home Made Pizza and Flatbreads and a sensational Onion Tart.