This caramelised onion gravy has a lovely syrup-like consistency with a balanced taste of sweet sugar and tangy vinegar. It's a hit with sausages and goes exceptionally well with other meats as well as roasted vegetables.
⏳
30 minutes
👪
makes 4 servings
🍎
91 kcal/serving
Bookmarks
- ❤️ Why I Like This Onion Gravy
- 📃 Ingredients Overview and Easy Substitutions
- 📢 Facts/Allergens
- 👪 Yield
- 📷 Step by Step Pictures
- 💡 Tips on How to Make a Perfect Caramelised Onion Gravy
- ⚡ What Can Go Wrong
- 🍎 Nutritional Values
- What Goes with Caramelised Onion Gravy?
- How to Store Onion Gravy
- How to Reheat Onion Gravy
- Recipe Summary
- Recipe Card
❤️ Why I Like This Onion Gravy
This caramelised onion gravy reminds me of onion chutney, especially if you reduce the liquid and the sauce thickens into a nice syrupy consistency.
- it takes less than 30 minutes to make
- contains only 5 ingredients
- doesn't need a thickener
- has a nice syrupy texture (if reduced)
- goes well with bangers and mash or toad in the hole
Note: This gravy doesn't contain much liquid; it's a rather concentrated, less saucy version that works great as a complimentary taste booster with the main dish.
📃 Ingredients Overview and Easy Substitutions
- onion
- light or dark muscovado sugar
- balsamic vinegar
- stock
- butter (optional)
Onion
It's fine to swap yellow onions for red onions.
Muscovado sugar
Depending on the type of muscovado sugar, the gravy will have either light brown or deep dark brown colour. The dark muscovado sugar has more molasses, therefore darker colour and richer taste. See the picture below.
the bowl at the bottom> gravy made with dark muscovado sugar.
If you have a problem getting hold of muscovado sugar, replace it with brown sugar instead.
Tip: Muscovado sugar is a great ingredient to have at home. I use it to sweeten up tomato-based meals and casseroles as well as for baking, making toffee-like sauces, or sprinkled over my morning porridge.
Balsamic vinegar
Balsamic vinegar has a subtle sweetness and lovely tang with fruity notes.
The best substitute for balsamic vinegar is possibly red wine vinegar. Still, you might need to add a bit more sugar as it is tangier.
Stock
I like using Kallo organic stock cubes for flavouring my meals. You need 350 millilitres of either shop-bought or homemade stock to make this recipe.
Any flavour will do; my preference is beef stock for its brown colour, but chicken or vegetable stock is also good in this onion gravy.
📢 Facts/Allergens
The recipe is entirely gluten-free, as it's without flour (or any other thickener, for that matter).
The only allergen on the ingredient list is butter (dairy). The butter also makes this recipe unsuitable for vegans, but it's an optional ingredient; removing it makes this side dish completely lactose-free and vegan friendly.
👪 Yield
The recipe makes onion gravy for up to four people. The more you reduce it, the less sauce you will have and the stickier the sauce will become.
Note: There is a similarity between this onion gravy recipe and onion chutney; the main ingredients are the same for both - onion, sugar and vinegar. If you leave the gravy reducing until most of the liquid evaporates, it will pretty much become onion chutney.
📷 Step by Step Pictures
Fry the onion on medium/high heat for about 15 minutes until it is light golden brown. Next, add the sugar and vinegar; stir continuously until the sugar melts, and the vinegar almost evaporates.
Pour half of the stock into the pan, turn the heat up, bring it to a rapid boil, and let the liquid reduce. After the first batch of stock almost evaporates, add the remaining half; repeat the process and boil until the gravy thickens (all to your liking). Take off the heat and melt in a dollop of butter.
💡 Tips on How to Make a Perfect Caramelised Onion Gravy
To be able to achieve that lovely concentrated syrupy consistency follow these tips:
- use wide pan
- don't darken the onion too much
- the stock reduces better if you add it in two steps and bring it to a rapid boil
- mellow down with a dollop of butter
⚡ What Can Go Wrong
There is nothing tricky about this recipe; it should work flawlessly. If the gravy is too liquidy, boil it for longer; and if it gets too dry, pour some hot water into the pan and give it a good stir.
🍎 Nutritional Values
There are approximately 91 kilocalories in one serving of my onion gravy. Each serving of onion gravy has more carbohydrates (16g) than fat (2g).
What Goes with Caramelised Onion Gravy?
This onion gravy is super versatile; it pairs well with meat as well as vegetable dishes.
It's our no. 1 choice for sausages and mash or toad in the hole. Still, it goes well with other meats like beef, meatballs, roasted pork or pork chops, and it nicely accompanies roasted vegetables.
How to Store Onion Gravy
I usually make this gravy fresh when I need it, as it doesn't take more than 30 minutes. However, you can cook it in advance to save some time.
Fridge
It's fine to keep the onion gravy or its leftovers in the refrigerator for up to five days.
Freezer
It is suitable for freezing (preferably in batches, so it's easy to defrost the amount you need).
How to Reheat Onion Gravy
Microwave
The easiest and quickest way is to reheat the gravy in the microwave; do it in two or three shorter intervals and stir in between each interval.
On the hob
You can reheat the sauce in a pan or a pot. Set the temperature to medium heat, bring to a gentle simmer; stir during reheating.
Tip: If the sauce becomes too dry and sticky during reheating, add a few splashes of hot water and give it a good stir.
Recipe Summary
This chutney-like onion gravy is a recipe that I make regularly. I like it rather sweet, but it's easy to adjust it to suit your preferences.
The big bonus is how easy and quick this recipe is to make; it takes around 30 minutes from start to finish. In addition, the ingredient list has only five items; the gravy doesn't need flour or cornstarch, and it doesn't ask for wine like some other recipes.
We have tried this onion gravy with James Matin's Toad in the hole, and we thought it was an excellent match. You can read about our experience making the recipe in our post - James Matin's Toad in the hole / Tried and Tested.
Recipe Card
Caramelised Onion Gravy
Ingredients
- 2 onions
- 2 - 3 tbsp muscovado sugar light or dark; levelled
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 300 ml beef stock or chicken, vegetable
- 10 g butter optional
Equipment
- frying pan
Instructions
- Fry the onion on medium/high heat for about 10 - 12 minutes until it starts turning golden brow.
- Add the sugar and vinegar to the pan; stir continuously until the sugar melts, and the vinegar almost evaporates.
- Pour half of the stock into the pan, turn the heat up, bring the liquid to a rapid boil, and let it reduce.
- After the most liquid evaporates and the sauce thickens, add the remaining half of the stock; cook until you like the consistency.
- Take off the heat and melt in a dollop of butter.
Anita says
This is the most amazing caramelised onion gravy I've ever tasted. So easy to make and very forgiving. My kids demolished it and deemed it #1!
Lea says
Thank you. I'm happy the onion gravy was a success 👍
M says
This was sickly sweet and had to be discarded.
Lea says
Hi M, I appreciate your comment, and I'm sorry the gravy wasn't your cup of tea. It is an example that our sense of taste can vary.
My family have a sweet tooth, and we like this gravy rather sweet, like onion chutney, which doesn't have to be everyone's preference. I'm sure some readers will be happy to know that it is safe to reduce the amount of sugar in the recipe.
I also added a note to the recipe card to ensure everyone is aware.
June says
I thought it was good! If it’s too sweet you could probably just add salt, beef stock, and (sparingly) vinegar, yeah?