Creamed onions make a tasty side dish. They are traditionally made with pearl onions that are served in a bechamel or creamy white sauce. What’s not to love?
Creamed Onions usually make an appearance around Thanksgiving or Christmas, but really should be eaten year-round because they are so delicious. It only takes a few pantry ingredients to make the sauce making it a great addition to the rest of our Vegetable Side Dishes.
How do you peel pearl onions?
The tiny size of the pearl onions can be a little intimidating to peel, but with a simple trick, you can have them peeled in no time.
First, put a pot of water on to boil. Then, set up a bowl of ice water to be ready to put your pearl onions in after boiling.
Once you do those two things, you’ll peel the onions. First, cut the root end off each pearl onion. When your water is boiling, add the pearl onions to the water for a minute or 2. Use a slotted spoon or spider strainer to transfer them to the ice water.
When they are cool enough to handle, you’ll grab the pearl onion by the stem end and squeeze until the onion pops out. They may retain some extra water so be sure to drain that before adding them to your sauce.
Can you use frozen pearl onions?
Yes, you can! You’ll want to defrost the onions first then follow the recipe to cook them. Sometimes frozen pearl onions have an outside layer that doesn’t taste quite as good so you can always take those loose layers off after defrosting them.
Can you make this dish ahead of time?
It’s a great recipe to make ahead of time. You can make the entire dish and place it in an oven-safe dish. Cover it with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
When reheating in the oven, just add a little extra time for it to heat through.
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The Best Creamed Onions
Creamed onions make a tasty side dish. They are traditionally made with pearl onions that are served in a bechamel or creamy white sauce. What’s not to love?
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 16 oz. pearl onions, peeled
- 1 and ½ tsp. salt, divided
- 2 Tbsp. butter
- 2 Tbsp. flour
- ⅔ cup chicken broth
- ⅔ cup milk
- ½ cup shredded Parmesan
- ¼ tsp. pepper
- Fresh parsley, to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a large pot, add a few quarts of water and 1 teaspoon of the salt. Bring to a light boil and add peeled pearl onions. Boil until tender, around 8-10 minutes then drain.
- In a separate saucepan, melt butter then add flour and whisk until combined and bubbling, around 1 minute. Slowly pour in chicken broth and milk and whisk until incorporated. Add in shredded Parmesan, remaining ½ teaspoon of salt and pepper and stir. Let simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Add in onions to the sauce mixture and let cook an additional 2-3 minutes.
- Add onion and sauce to an oven safe dish. Bake until bubbly before serving, about 10 minutes.
- Garnish with parsley and serve.
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