Shauna James Ahern's Caramelized Onions

Ingredients

• 4 large white onions, peeled
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon sugar, optional
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

1. Halve the onions from root to tip, then trim away the ends where any stubborn peel may still be hanging on. Cut each half into quarters, then slice them slowly, aiming for pieces that are as consistent as you can manage.
2. Place a Dutch oven or a large, wide pot over medium-high heat. Once the heat rising from the pot feels hot, add the oil, then the butter. When the butter is melted and the oil looks glossy, add the onions and toss until they are coated.
3. After 10 minutes, sprinkle the sugar, if you are using it, and the salt over the onions, then stir thoroughly. Continue cooking, giving the onions a good stir about every 10 minutes, as they soften and lose volume. At about 30 minutes, they will have collapsed and started to brown. Stir well, using a metal spatula to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
4. Do not let the onions scorch. Even a small burned spot can make the whole batch taste bitter, and nobody needs that in their caramelized onions.
5. Lower the heat to medium. Continue cooking, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pot about every 2 to 3 minutes so the onions brown without burning. If you like, add a tablespoon of water to loosen the browned bits from the pot and fold them back into the onions. This is the stretch where staying close pays off.
6. After 45 minutes, the onions will be beautifully cooked. After 60 minutes, they will be deep brown with a gentle sweetness. The more time they spend over the heat, the darker and sweeter they become.