Anisette and Port Pearl Glazed Onions
This recipe was inspired by Bon Appetit November 2008 issue with pearl onions with port. I added the anisette because this pairs beautifully with game meats, like pheasant, venison, and buffalo steak. I made this on Thanksgiving with pork crown roast and everyone enjoyed these little jewels.
This recipe was inspired by Bon Appetit November 2008 issue with pearl onions with port. I added the anisette because this pairs beautifully with game meats, like pheasant, venison, and buffalo steak. I made this on Thanksgiving with pork crown roast and everyone enjoyed these little jewels.
- Carbohydrate 13.7379731088005 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 0.00830033078767822 g
- Fiber 0.0773181519717457 g
- Protein 0.19235459012529 g
- Saturated Fat 0.00217173038417334 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (79g)
- Sodium 8.11098448442513 mg
- Sugar 13.6606549568288 g
- Trans Fat 0.00136443793770053 g
- Calories 132 calories
Step-by-step
- Prepare onions by cutting an X at the end of the root base.
- Place all onions in a large bowl and cover with hot tap water.
- Allow to sit in water bath for approximately 1 hour.
- (SAVE WATER FOR ONION BROTH)
- Next, remove pearl onions from water so you can peel off the outer paper thin skins, leaving the rest of the onion.
- Transfer to large pot.
- Add anisette liquor and Port, onion broth, mint springs, and brown sugar; bring to boil, stirring until sugar dissolves.
- Reduce heat to medium.
- Simmer until onions are tender when pierced with sharp knife, about 30 minutes.
- Using slotted spoon, transfer onions to bowl.
- Boil liquid in pot until syrupy and reduced to 3 tablespoons, about 15 minutes.
- Discard mint leaves.
- Stir balsamic vinegar into Anisette and Port reduction.
- Pour reduction over onions.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
- Allow to marinade before serving, can be made a couple of days ahead.
- Remove from refrigerator and allow to be served at room temperature before serving.
Why does soaking small onions in hot water make peeling effortless?
- Cutting a shallow X into the root base severs the core fibers that hold the papery layers tight. Hot tap water hydrates those outer layers over a one-hour soak, allowing the skins to slide off without tearing the delicate flesh.
- Simmering the peeled vegetables in port, anisette, and reserved onion broth cooks the cell walls until soft. Port supplies natural sugars and grape tannins, while anisette introduces an aromatic profile of licorice compounds that bind to the sweet aromatics of the allium.
- Boiling the strained cooking liquid for fifteen minutes evaporates excess water. This concentrates the sugars and acids until the mixture achieves a syrupy consistency that clings to the back of a spoon.
- Stirring in balsamic vinegar at the very end corrects the sugar balance with acetic acid. Skipping this final splash leaves the glaze cloying, while substituting regular white vinegar will impart a harshness that overpowers the licorice notes.
Prepared onions can be refrigerated for up to forty-eight hours before serving. Bringing the dish back to room temperature lets the fats and sugars relax into a glossy coat.
