Ina Garten's Simple Tip To Caramelize Onions Faster Than Normal

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Caramelizing onions is one of the best ways to cook them — this preparation is soft, sweet, and perfect for topping your burger or sandwich. However, the one downside of this flavorful ingredient is how long it can take to make. If time is a luxury you don't have but you don't want to risk burning your onions, heed celeb chef Ina Garten's simple tip. In her 2018 book "Cook Like a Pro," Garten shares that the key to caramelizing onions quickly is using a large pot.

She explains that a wide pot — aka one with significant surface area — allows more of the onion slices to be in direct contact with the heat. This way, the onions "will cook more quickly and caramelize better than if you put them in a small pot," she writes. Using a smaller vessel, as Garten points out, will actually steam your onions instead of caramelizing them, especially if you've overcrowded the pan. So, stick with one that has a large surface area, cook your onions in one layer, and if you have to, work in batches.

Ina Garten's tip is a great way to get started when making onions, but we have a few additional methods for speeding up the caramelization process. One of these is to add some sugar to the pan after sautéing your onions. This will help them caramelize faster by boosting the pan's sugar content. Remember, though, less is more here — you only need about 1 teaspoon per four onions. Alternatively, adding a pinch of baking soda is another effective way to caramelize your onions in a flash. This will raise the vegetable's pH, prompting the pieces to brown and soften faster. Again, use a light hand: Only add about ⅛ teaspoon per pound of onions, as too much more can make the slices overly mushy.

Another trick for achieving faster caramelization is to add some water to your pan. The water can help speed up the softening process since the moisture will break the onions down faster. This will also help the onions' sugar distribute more evenly, and as the water evaporates, you'll finally get that rich, caramelized flavor. With the right pan and a few tweaks, you can enjoy perfectly caramelized onions in far less time — without sacrificing taste or texture.