Cipolline is pronounced chip-oh-LEE-nay and is a flat type of onion used in Italy for this dish.
How to make Cipolline in Agrodolce (Onions in Sweet and Sour Sauce)
Peel some onions, without removing the roots, or the onions will fall apart while cooking. Place in a single layer in a pan with a lid. Add the butter, tomato purée and 300ml water. Bring to the boil and simmer very gently, with the lid on, for about half an hour.
Add the sugar, vinegar and seasoning. Mix well and continue simmering, with the lid on, for a further half an hour until the onions are cooked through and very soft.
Now remove the lid and simmer faster, until the sauce is reduced down to a thick coating sauce.
What are the onions like?
Italians say to serve the onions like this at room temperature. I think that that would work better at the hot temperatures of Puglia, where this recipe comes from. Personally, I like these warm.
This makes a perfect side dish. It tastes sweet without actually having much sugar in it. The sauce is wonderful. It would work fabulously as part of a vegetarian trio, with, for instance, beans with sesame and hazelnuts, and garlic mushrooms.
Variations to the recipe
This would work well with any firm vegetable. So I would try carrots and swede, turnip and potatoes. You could add herbs too if you like. I think rosemary would be nice.
Definitely something I will be doing again.
Any leftover sauce would be fabulous used anywhere you would use a sweet and sour sauce. I haven’t tried it yet, but I would try making just the sauce to use in Chinese type sweet and sour recipes – over rice, with cooked chicken, pork or tofu. Perhaps simmer one onion when making the sauce to us in this way to get that onion flavour in there.
Ingredients
- 700 g onions
- 50 g butter
- 1 tblsp tomato puree
- 1 tblsp sugar
- 2 tblsp wine vinegar
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Peel the onions, but do not remove the roots, or the onions will fall apart while cooking.
- Place in a single layer in a pan with a lid.
- Add the butter, tomato purée and 300ml water
- Bring to the boil and simmer very gently, with the lid on, for about half an hour.
- Add the sugar, vinegar and seasoning.
- Mix well and continue simmering, with the lid on, for a further half an hour until the onions are cooked through and very soft.
- Now remove the lid and simmer faster, until the sauce is reduced down to a thick coating sauce.
Equipment Needed
Notes
Hi, Lesley! I’ve just found your blog recently, and am really enjoying it. This recipe looks great, and just right for the autumn months. Looking forward to trying it…