Pearl Onion Recipes

By: Laura Sommers

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Pearl onions, also known as baby onions or creamers, are small varieties of bulb onions. They’re round like the classic white or yellow onion you typically see at the grocery store, but they’re much smaller, ranging from about a quarter of an inch to about a half of an inch in diameter. White pearl onions are the most popular variety, but they also come in red and yellow.

Pearl onions are sweeter and milder than regular onions or even shallots, though they’re not as sweet as cipollini onions, another variety of small onion that is flatter in shape. Pearl onions are available year-round either peeled and frozen, or fresh in a mesh bag with their papery skins still on.

Pearl onions are incredibly versatile. You can pickle them to use as a garnish in a Gibson cocktail, add to a sauté with green beans and a balsamic glaze, throw into soups and stews, roast with brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes or in gratins, and perhaps most famously, heat in a pan with chicken broth and butter until caramelized and serve as a side dish. Every Christmas or Thanksgiving holiday serves creamed onions as a delicious side dish.

This cookbook has many delicious recipes using pearl onions for a variety of tastes.