French Onion Dip

Amongst my many guilty pleasures, chips and dip has to be somewhere near the top of the list. A crunchy, salty chip dipped into a creamy caramelized onion dip is a virtual party on your palate. The contrasting flavors and textures explains in part how one could easily become obsessed. However, not all onion dips are created equal. There is a night and day taste difference between a french onion dip made with caramelized onions and one made any other way. One is epic and the other is second-rate. It's always easy to rationalize indulging in something sumptuously wondrous but even easier to walk away from anything that isn't. This French Onion Dip would be one falling into the so insanely heavenly you could eat it off the spoon category. In other words it's so good, it's almost dangerous.

Caramelizing the onions adds such an incredible depth of flavor to this dip, you won't mind shedding any tears while slicing the onions or standing at the stove sautéing them for 40-50 minutes. Add to this the intoxicating aroma of the onions caramelizing and you just hope you have enough restraint to not eat it all before serving it to family and/or friends.

This French Onion Dip works for either a casual gathering or fancy shin-dig. And it's so awesome, it could also be the only appetizer you serve. Just make sure you have enough. 

The best onions for caramelizing are on the sweeter side. Choose either yellow onions or organic sweet onions. I used a combination of the two.

Slicing the onions using a knife or mandoline to about an 1/8 inch thickness will ensure they cook evenly. If you cut them too thin, the onions won't have the sweetness resulting from the long, slow caramelization process. If you cut them too thick, you will be standing at the stove forever and quite possibly never get them to the desired golden brown, caramelized state.

There are many different opinions about whether to use butter, vegetable oil, or a combination of both when sautéing onions to the point of caramelization. This recipe uses both butter and vegetable oil. Additionally, there are a couple of schools of thought as to which heat level brings out the deepest, sweetest flavor. Caramelization should be a slow process and to that end this recipe uses a steady medium-low heat. Cooking time ranged somewhere between 40-50 minutes.

Once caramelized, the onions should cool slightly and be coarsely chopped before they are mixed into the cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, kosher salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper mixture. 

The French Onion Dip can be enjoyed immediately after it's made or you can make it early in the day (or the night before) to let the flavor of the dip deepen even further. If you refrigerate the dip for several hours or overnight, take out of the refrigerator at least 45 minutes before serving. Stir it again to return it to it's creamy texture. If by chance it seems too thick for dipping, add up an additional 1/4 cup of sour cream.

This French Onion Dip has a thicker consistency of most store-bought or soup-mixed onion dips. Which means it needs to be served with a thicker cut potato chip. If you make a killer homemade potato chips, go for it. But cutting open packages of thick, ridged, or ruffled potato chips is how we roll around here. National Chip and Dip Day isn't until March 23. But I wouldn't wait until then to make your new favorite French Onion Dip.

Recipe
French Onion Dip
Updated February 2022

Ingredients
3 medium or 2 large yellow or sweet organic onions, cut in half and then into 1/8" rounds (See notes)
4 Tablespoons ( 57g) unsalted butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
6 ounces (170g) cream cheese, softened, room temperature
3/4 cup (180g) sour cream
1 cup (240g) good quality mayonnaise 
Ridged, ruffled, or other thick cut potato chips

Directions
1. In a large, heavy bottomed pan, heat the butter and oil on medium heat. When butter has melted, add in the onions. Reduce heat to medium-low and sauté for 40-50 minutes, or until the onions are golden brown and caramelized. Stir frequently to prevent burning as well to evenly sauté the onions.
2. Transfer the caramelized onions to a bowl and allow to cool slightly. When cool, coarsely chop and set aside.
3. In the bowl of standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add in the cream cheese. Beat until the cream cheese is smooth and creamy.
4. Add in sour cream, mayonnaise, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper. Mix until well blended.
5. Stir in the coarsely chopped caramelized onions.
6. Transfer to a serving bowl. Serve immediately or cover and chill in the refrigerator. Note: Can be made one day ahead of serving. Take out of the refrigerator at least 45 minutes before serving. Stir to return dip to a creamy texture.
7. Garnish with thinly sliced chives or green onions (optional)
8. Serve with thick cut, ridged or ruffled potato chips.

Notes: (1) The weight of the uncut onions was 1 lb. 10 oz./740 g and the cut weight was 1 lb. 3 oz./540g. (2) Use a sturdier, thicker cut potato chip versus a thin potato chip. I used Lay's Wavy Potato Chips. (3) If the French Onion Dip is too thick after being refrigerated and sitting out for 45 minutes, add up to 1/4 cup of additional sour cream.