Caramelized Onion Dip: A Great Holiday Party Dip

This Creamy Caramelized Onion Dip is perfect for New Year's Eve, a Super Bowl Party, a summer backyard BBQ or even a movie night!  

Who likes a good party?!? When I was a kid and my parents had parties and I remember my mom making an onion dip with sour cream and Lipton onion soup mix - do you remember that dip?? I feel like it was one of those classic party dips, so with the holidays coming up, I decided to share my take with this slightly more "grown-up" version of that dip. This caramelized onion dip is a great staple cocktail party appetizer that's really easy to make. This dip is ideal for both small get-togethers and larger gatherings.

Instead of using the onion soup mix, I added caramelized onions and several different seasonings for the great onion taste. I just love caramelized onions and I know a lot of other people do too, however, I often hear people say they think they are had to make, so if you are one of those people I'm hoping I can help change that perception with this post!

 

How to make Caramelized Onion Dip

Though caramelizing the onions takes some time, this dip is still super simple to make. I recommend making it early in the day so the flavors have a chance to meld.

Caramelize the onions: Caramelizing will work best in a Le Creuset type pan, though stainless steel or standard cast iron will work too - they are just a bit more difficult to clean up afterward! If none of those is an option, a non-stick skillet will work just fine too, you just won't get as much fond. The onions should be nice and golden brown when they are done. Sometimes they may get a little darker, so if needed turn the heat down a bit, but if they are darker, don't panic, they will still taste great.

So the key to caramelizing onions not to rush….this is a sloooowwww process and a bit of patience is required!  You want to cook the onions over medium-low heat to be sure they don't burn or get dark too quickly as they won't really caramelize if they cook too quickly. Cooking them slowly also gives you that nice fond - the brown bits that form on the bottom of the pan. You want to scrape those back into the onions periodically to incorporate all that wonderful flavor!

Assemble the dip: Once the onions are caramelized you mix them in with the rest of the ingredients and refrigerate the dip until you are ready to serve it.

Toast the bread: Since you need something to eat with this super tasty dip, I thought we would tackle a simple compound butter too! Compound butter is just butter combined with herbs, spices or other seasonings. It allows the flavor to spread evenly throughout the dish, and slathered on a nice fresh sourdough baguette that's pan-toasted it gives you an absolutely delicious dipping vessel!

How to serve Caramelized Onion Dip

This dip is great for any type of party or gathering, especially holiday parties. If you want to create an easy, festive cocktail party menu featuring this dip I'd add:

• Crab Mac n Cheese Bites
• Cranberry Brie Tarts
• Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries

A nice cheese board and some sparkling wine would round out the menu well.

More dip recipes

• Instant Pot Queso Dip
• Edamame Avocado Hummus
• Mexican Street Corn Dip

Caramelized Onion Dip

Author: Kathryn | Urban Foodie Kitchen

This creamy caramelized onion dip is perfect for new year’s eve, a super bowl party or even a summer backyard bbq!

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Course Appetizers

Cuisine American

Servings 2 ½ cups

Calories 80 kcal

Ingredients

  

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For the onions

• 1 large onion, vertically sliced
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon sherry, divided

For the dip

• 1 ⅓ cups plain low-fat Greek yogurt
• ⅔ cup whipped cream cheese
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon white ground pepper, or black
• ¼ teaspoon celery salt
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

For the bread

• 1 baguette
• ½ stick unsalted butter
• ¼ cup chopped fresh herbs, rosemary, thyme, oregano, etc
• ½ teaspoon sea salt

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Instructions

 

• Caramelize the onions. Melt butter in a pan over medium-low heat. Add onions and let them sit for about 20 minutes as they begin to caramelize. Stir every 10 minutes or so, ensuring they don't turn too dark. As the fond starts to form on the bottom of the pan, add a ½ tablespoon of sherry and deglaze the pan (scrape as much of the dark bits from the bottom as possible). As the onions continue to cook, stir them every 10 minutes until they are done. Once they are a nice golden brown color, add the additional ½ tablespoon of sherry and deglaze again. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
• Mix the dip base. While the onions are cooking, mix the greek yogurt and cream cheese in a small mixing bowl. Add the garlic powder, pepper, salt and Worcestershire sauce; mix well until smooth and creamy. Refrigerate until the onions are done cooking.
• Make the dip. Once the onions have cooled, remove them from the pan and place them on a cutting board, reserving a tablespoon or two for topping. Chop the onions and then add them to the yogurt mixture; stir until incorporated. Return to refrigerator while the bread is toasting.
• Make the compound butter. In a small bowl mix the butter, herbs and sea salt. 
• Toast the bread.  Slice the baguette on an angle to form longer pieces, about an inch thick. Butter one side of each baguette slice. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Place bread slices in skillet, buttered side down and toast for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Repeat with additional slices until all baguette slices are toasted.
• Serve. When ready to serve, top dip with reserved caramelized onions.

Notes

• While this dip can be served right away, I typically like to make it either the night before or early in the morning to really give the flavors time to meld. If you are making it ahead of time wait to toast the bread until right before serving.
• In addition to the toasted bread, this dip is a big hit with thick-cut potato chips.

Nutrition

Serving: 2tablespoonsCalories: 80kcal

Keywords : game day snacks, party dips

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This post was originally published in December 2015. It was updated in November 2020 with some new information and photos. No changes were made to the original recipe.