Caramelized Onion Mashed Potatoes
Caramelized Onion Mashed Potatoes- Creamy gold potatoes are elevated to the next level thanks to sweet caramelized onions and gooey gruyere cheese.
November 11, 2024 by Nicole Collins
Today, we’re making Caramelized Onion Mashed Potatoes!
It’s potato day in our Small Batch Holiday Cooking series, and it might just be my favorite of them all. And if we’re being honest, it’s always potato day. Because potatoes are one of those simple pleasures in life that have the ability to make all the wrongs in the world right. It’s just fact.
Today, we’re taking my base mashed potato recipe, adding sweet caramelized onions, then finishing it off with some ooey gooey cheese. Is potato day already you’re favorite now too, or what?
Let’s start with the onions. We’re going to let a couple sweet onions cook low and slow in a skillet along with a little salt, pepper, fresh thyme, and brown sugar to help bring out the sweetness in the onions. We want them to become deep golden brown in color, so this is going to take a solid 45ish minutes. You can’t rush perfection! Once the onions have beautifully caramelized, we’ll let them cool enough to mince them up into itty bitty pieces.
While the onions are going, we can get started on our potatoes. In my opinion, gold potatoes are the only way to go for mashed potatoes. They’re so naturally buttery and creamy, they make the perfect mash. I typically leave the skin on my potatoes, because I like a lumpy mashed potato. But since we’re going to be getting a little extra texture from the onions in the mash, I opted to peel the potatoes this time. But if you don’t have that in you, feel free to leave the skin on. It’s extra fiber!
We’re going to chop the potatoes, then start them off in cold salted water to encourage even cooking. We’ll bring them to a boil, let them cook until they’re fork tender, drain off the water, and toss them right back in the hot pot for mixing. Finally, we’ll season them up with all the good stuff…butter, cream, sour cream, our caramelized onions, and a nice big handful of nutty gruyere cheese. Give everything a good mix until your potatoes are nice and smooth, and that’s all there is to it!
These mashed potatoes are definitely giving French onion vibes, and it’s absolutely heavenly. They’re perfectly savory with little pops of sweet onion. They’re perfectly creamy with all that gooey cheese. And, they are an absolute dream on the table regardless of what time of year it is.
Ok, everyone! The next two recipes will be our veggies for the table…a green bean casserole for one and a shaved brussels sprouts salad. But, since both recipes have similar versions that already exist here on the site, those two will be exclusively on my socials. So, make sure you’re following along on Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook if you want to see them! Then, we’ll be back here on Wednesday with the star of the show…the main event. So, I’ll see you then!
I hope you guys enjoy! And, let’s eat!
Caramelized Onion Mashed Potatoes
Serves: 4 Print
Ingredients:
1 tbsp + 4 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
2 medium yellow onions, halved and sliced
½ tsp + 1 tbsp + ¼ tsp salt, divided
¼ tsp + ¼ tsp pepper, divided
1 sprig thyme (about 4 stems)
2 lbs yukon gold potatoes, peeled and chopped to 1 inch pieces
2 tbsp heavy cream
¼ cup sour cream
1 cup shredded gruyere cheese
Directions:
In a large heavy bottomed skillet, melt 1 tbsp butter over medium low heat. Add onions, thyme, ½ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp pepper. Cook for 35-40 mins, stirring every 5-7 mins, until the onions are softened and deep brown in color. Discard the thyme sprig. Remove from heat, and set aside to cool slightly. When the onions are cool enough to handle, mince them in to small pieces.
Meanwhile, to a large pot, add potatoes and 1 tbsp salt; then cover with cold water, making sure there's about an inch of water above the top of the potatoes. Heat to high, and bring to a boil. Boil for 12-15 minutes until the potatoes are fork tender. Remove from heat, drain, and put potatoes back in the pot.
Add 4 tbsp butter to the potatoes, and use a potato masher to mash to your desired texture. Add sour cream, heavy cream, gruyere, minced caramelized onions, ¼ tsp salt, and ¼ pepper. Stir until potatoes are creamy. Enjoy!
Recipe notes:
*Yukon golds are my absolute favorite potatoes in the whole world. They have so much flavor! However, you could absolutely substitute a red potato for the yukons golds, if you'd like.
*Make sure you only mix the potatoes by hand. You could use a hand mixer if you like them a little smoother. Don't throw these in a food processor or stand mixer unless you like gummy, gluey potatoes. Yuck!
