Homemade French Onion Dip

Made from scratch French Onion Dip with homemade caramelized onions. Its worth the time as you will not get this flavor from store bought dip!

Homemade French Onion Dip

Made from scratch French Onion Dip recipe with homemade caramelized onions. Caramelizing onions does take time but its so worth it because you will not get this flavor from store bought dip! Dip can be made-ahead, can be even dairy-free. Read on to learn more. 

Store bought Onion Dips have so many ingredients you can't even pronounce or know. Various kinds of artificial gums and thickeners which you don't need to put in your body. Good news is - it is super easy to make creamy delicious French Onion dip at home. Recipe does need time to caramelize onions. But it is time worth spent to get the legit French Onion dip flavor. You can caramelize onions up-to 7 days in advance and then mix dip in just few minutes.

To all fans of Store Bought Dip.. Try this recipe and it will change the way you know French Onion Dip, for good! It is the superior version of French Onion Dip, much more delicious with homemade caramelized onions and all ingredients that you can pronounce. Ok.. all but Worcestershire. ;)

So let's make French Onion Dip today!  Shall we?!

Caramelized Onion Dip Recipe

WHAT IS FRENCH ONION DIP?

French Onion Dip is Onionyy Goodness. Not sharp onion flavor but savory. It is the flavor of French Onion Soup transformed into a creamy party dip. Onions get deep caramelized sweet-savory flavor which pairs perfect with creamy ingredients. Not spicy not sweet but just right savory. Something which every guest will enjoy.

HOW TO CARAMELIZE ONIONS?

Caramelized onions are sweet and savory. That is distinct flavor which defines French Onion Dip. It's going to take time to achieve that deep golden brown color and sweet-savory flavor of caramelized onions. Like they say, there are no shortcuts to success. Likewise I say, there is no shortcut to getting the flavor as good as French Onion Dip made with homemade caramelized onions.

In my humble opinion, there is no match of French Onion dip flavor made with homemade caramelized onion vs raw or dried onion. 

You will need a dutch oven or heavy bottom pot for even distribution of heat. Heat oil and butter in pot. Butter adds lot of flavor just like French Onion Soup. Onions start getting color at mark of 35 minutes on low-medium heat. Add another 20 minutes for deep golden-brown caramelized onions..

How to caramelize onion for French Onion Dip

Caramelizing requires stirring the onions in pot every 5-6 minutes. If onions start to brown and stick to pot, follow this simple hack to get onion back on even cooking:

Move onions on side of pot and use 1 tsp water to deglaze/lift the caramelization. This quick step makes caramelizing onions an easy process. Just don't forget to use no more than 1 tsp water at a time. Food critics may say using water with caramelizing is not good but it works. Water evaporates quickly, does not impact flavor, and makes my life easier. Totally worth it!!

DO's and DON'Ts

  1. Do use salt when sweating onion. Salt brings out moisture of onion, speed up the process of cooking.
  2. Don't use sugar. Yellow onion have enough amount of sweetness that comes out when onions are caramelized. Additional Sugar is not needed.
  3. Don't use garlic powder. Instead add fresh 2 cloves of garlic (about a tsp when minced) and cook with onions. 

Made from scratch French Onion Dip

100% MAKE-AHEAD DIP

This made-from-scratch French Onion Dip you can actually make and serve in 1 minute. Amazing! Right? Just caramelize the onions and refrigerate when you have time. Rest of the dip takes 1 minute to assemble. You can:

  1. Caramelize the onions and refrigerate for up-to 7 days, then serve dip in 1 minute any time.
  2. Assemble whole dip and refrigerate up-to 2 days. Just mix well and garnish before serving. In-fact, it is best to refrigerate dip overnight for best flavor.

Bit on Life of Blogger:

In last 12 years, we changed 7 Apartments. Sometimes for my husband's new job and sometimes because of freaky ever-increasing rent. Every-time we move, my blog photography takes a stall until I find that right window in home with perfect amount of light. Likewise, this time when we moved, I could not zero-in on one place with good light. With this recipe, I can finally announce that I have found the one. Yeah! :)  No more recipe discarding for dull photos. Hoping to share delicious treats with you more often.

On this sweet positive note, saying "bye" for today. I hope this homemade delicious French Onion Dip will make to your next party platter. Don't forget to serve Potato Chips for dipping. French Onion Dip and Potato Chips are made-for-each-other. Yum!

Enjoy! -Savita

More Delicious dip on the blog:

Blue Cheese (Bleu Cheese) Dressing Shrimp Saganaki - (Shrimp, Tomato and Feta Dip) Baked Goat Cheese Dip with Bruschetta

Homemade French Onion Dip

5 (2 reviews)
Homemade French Onion Dip
Total Time: Prep Time: Cook Time: Cuisine: American () Difficulty: Easy
Yields: 1.5 Cup - Serves: 6
(No. of servings depends on serving size.)

Ingredients

Directions

  • 1. Caramelize Onion - Heat oil and butter in a dutch oven or heavy bottom pot until butter has melted. Add diced onions. Sprinkle 1/4 tsp of salt on top. Mix well. Turn heat to medium-low. If onions start to burn at edges, lower heat further down so that onions caramelize evenly. After 35-40 minutes onions start to change color to amber. At this point add garlic and thyme leaves. Continue cooking for another 40-45 minutes stirring every 5-6 minutes until onions are deep golden caramel color. Once done remove pot from heat. Transfer caramelized onion to a bowl. Let cool to room temperature before mixing into the dip. Additional Notes: Resist temptation to increase heat at all times or onions will burn. SEE Note 1 to fix if onions start catching at the bottom of pot.
  • 2. Assemble French Onion Dip - In a bowl, add sour cream and mayonnaise. Add remaining ingredients - lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper and 1/4 tsp of salt. With a rubber spatula, mix all ingredients until well combined. Now add caramelized onion and fold into the dip. Taste and adjust salt. Additional Notes: See Note 2 for Dairy-Free. See Note 3 for more flavor ideas.
  • 3. Garnish French Onion Dip with chopped chives or scallions. Serve with Potato Chips. Enjoy!
Savita's Notes:
  1. If onions start to brown and stick to pot, follow this simple hack to get onion back on even cooking:
    Move onions on side of pot and use 1 tsp water to deglaze/lift the caramelized bits. This quick step makes caramelizing onions an easy process. Just don't forget to use no more than 1 tsp water at a time. Food critics may say using water with caramelizing is not good but it works. Water evaporates quickly, does not impact flavor, and makes my life easier. Totally worth it!
  2. For Dairy-Free Dip, a) replace butter with olive oil; b) replace Sour Cream with Dairy-Free Greek Yogurt. 
  3. For Spicy dip, mix few dash of Tabasco or Hot Sauce. Adjust the salt and lemon juice to taste.
  4. Refrigerate dip overnight for best flavor.
  5. Make-ahead dip up-to 2 days. Mix well and garnish before serving. 
  6. you can also make-ahead caramelized onions up-to 7 days in advance. Just mix in dip when ready or a night before for flavor to mingle.
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? Tag @SAVITACHEFDEHOME on Instagram and hashtag it #SAVITACHEFDEHOME

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4 Responses

  1. this was very tasty. thanks for detailed instructions.
    Thanks. I'm happy to share.
  2. Loved this dip!! Blown away with the flavor. I’m never going back to store-bought jar. I followed your advice and cooked onions yesterday. rest was quick. Thank you for the recipe.
    Thanks for feedback, Casey! I'm glad you liked the dip.