 |
Moroccan Onions (Mezgaldi Spiced Onions) |
 |
Real Food, Fresh & Family-Tested. Not just easy, Summer Easy. Budget Friendly. Weeknight Easy, Weekend Special. Potluck & Party Friendly, a Real Crowd Pleaser. Scales from Small Plates to Large Platters. Low Carb. Low Fat. Weight Watchers Friendly. Not just vegan, Vegan Done Real. Naturally Gluten Free.
COMPLIMENTS!
- "... it turned out great." ~ Sally
- "Those were GREAT!" ~ Randy
- Moroccan Onions Made the List!
- Best Recipes of 2010
Even Cold Food Is "Hot". And "Cool".
No question, food – the topic – is as "hot" as this last soul-sizzling summer and as "cool" as the fall air that wafts through the open window right now.
One venerable media outlet after another is dishing up food. My favorite magazine, The Atlantic, now publishes extensive food content online. My favorite news source, NPR, has great food coverage but recipe hunters will especially appreciate NPR’s Kitchen Window. The Smithsonian has new food content called Food & Think. Even CNN (yes, the ‘news’ CNN) launched a new food site called Eatocracy.
(Fascinating. In 2021? None of these big-media food pages are active any longer!)
I Really Do.
But truth be told, despite the big-budget credentials of the slick newcomers, my favorite food sites are published in spare time on a shoestring by food bloggers, home cooks who put breakfast, lunch and supper on the table week in and week out.
These aren’t "professional" food and media people – but produce authentic, inspiring and yes, professional, results.
Take Kayotic Kitchen, the lovely food blog from the Netherlands. When Kay (get it, Kay? Kay-otic?) posted a recipe for a Moroccan Tomato Salad, she urged readers to take another look at another Moroccan recipe from last year, an onion dish called Mezgaldi.
I took the bait and a look and immediately printed off the recipe. A day or so later, I found the recipe in my bookmarks, saved last year when Kay first published the recipe. Same recipe, a year apart!
I can take a hint: I made the onions straight off. OH MY they are good. The spices are sweet and gentle, if you close your eyes you just might imagine colorful scenes right out of Marrakesh (open your eyes to be transported into My Marrakesh, another favorite blog, this time, no recipes, just color and design).
(Hmmm .... in 2021, Kayotic Kitchen and My Marrakesh are also inactive. It's a life lesson, I suppose. Enjoy everything you can, now, because even good things can be fleeting.)
I ♥ Moroccan Onions. So Do Others!
That was 2010 and I’ve been making Moroccan Onions ever since, for two, for twelve, for twenty.
Adventurous eaters love them, onion lovers gobble them up. (Kids, oops, not so much.)
They’re unusual, quick to make and very tasty.
Over time, I’ve cut the oil to just a tablespoon, it’s plenty. While the onion slices are delicious hot, they really shine at room temperature – that makes Moroccan Onions a natural for a buffet or a make-ahead side for grilled meat.
Moreover, sliced thin and roasted, the onions are surprising but welcome additions to open-faced sandwiches.
Besides Onions, What Else Are We Missing?
If you're like me, onions so common in your kitchen that you rarely think to make them the star of the show instead of hard-working stagehands.
It all has me wondering what "else" we take for granted, what other foods might be as simple but as surprising as Moroccan Onions. What do you think?
You'll Love Moroccan Onions If ...
- An easy, inexpensive, crowd-pleasing side dish is in order
- A full range of serving temperatures is important (hot or room temperature or even chilled)
- You need a last-minute, hands-off side dish for a buffet or a family meal
- You're building a dinner menu of Middle-Eastern-style dishes
- You just love-love-love onions!
- Ready to get started? Here's your recipe!
Bookmark! PIN! Share!
How do you save and share favorite recipes? recipes that fit your personal cooking style? a particular recipe your mom or daughter or best friend would just love? If this recipe for Moroccan Onions hits the mark, go ahead, save and share! I'd be honored ...
MOROCCAN ONIONS
(also called "Mezgaldi", Moroccan Spiced Onions)
Time to table: 1-1/4 hours
Makes 12 rings
-
SPICED OIL
- 1 - 3 tablespoons olive oil (see TIPS)
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ginger
- 1/8 teaspoon turmeric or 1/4 teaspoon curry
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
-
ONIONS
- 4 medium onions (white, red, yellow or sweet, see TIPS)
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon sugar
Heat oven to 400F/200C.
SPICED OIL In a small bowl, stir together the oil and spices.
ONIONS Wash the onions and slice off the ends. Peel off the outer papery skins and then cut crosswise into slices about 3/4- to 1-inch thick. Brush both sides with the Spiced Oil, arrange in a baking dish, overlapping a little if needed. Pour over any remaining Spice Oil. Wash the water down the sides of the baking dish, taking care not to rinse the oil and spices off the onions.
BAKE Cover tightly with foil and bake for 40-45 minutes until the onions are soft.
BROIL Remove the baking dish from the oven, turn on the broiler and place an oven rack about six inches below the broiler. Sprinkle the sugar atop the onions and place the baking dish under the broiler until the onion tops brown and caramelize a bit, about 5 to 15 minutes, checking every 5 minutes because they can turn fast.
SERVE If you like, serve hot, otherwise, let cool to room temperature. Serve and savor!
SERVING IDEAS Moroccan Onions are especially good with grilled meats and one contribution to a meze of middle-eastern dishes like hummus and olive spread. It's my go-to side dish for Easy Garlic-Herb Mediterranean Chicken ("Med Chicken") and Afghan Chicken & Rice Casserole (Kabeli Palau).
For fun, the first time I made Moroccan Onions, I sliced up four onion varieties, a yellow onion, a sweet Vidalia onion, a red onion and a white onion. They were all excellent, the red onion (surprisingly) just a little bit not as good and the white onion (again, surprisingly) just a little bit better. But the red onions do look quite pretty, I’d choose them for aesthetics. Overlapping the onion slices makes for a pretty presentation. It helps to put a small wedge of onion beneath the first slice to prop it up a little. The broiler step might seem superfluous, but it's not. That last blast of heat really works to both caramelize the sugars and built up flavor.
WEIGHT WATCHERS Old Points 2 & PointsPlus 2 & SmartPoints 4 & Freestyle 2 & myWW green 2 & blue 2 & purple 2
- THE RECIPE Julia Child's Soubise (Onion & Rice Casserole) Thin ribbons of onion with rice and a little cream and cheese.
- ANOTHER TAKE Cheese Gnocchi Pie Kitchen Parade's debut column!
- THE RECIPE Spiced Pickled Red Onions A game changer for tacos, salads, eggs and more.
- ANOTHER TAKE Quick Jalapeño Pickles No canning required.
- THE RECIPE Slow Cooker Caramelized Onions Extra-special with a little brown sugar and a little sherry.
- ANOTHER TAKE Moroccan Onions Sliced, spiced and roasted onions, the traditional mezgaldi.
- THE RECIPE Moroccan Chicken A one-pot stew simmered with eggplant and tomato perfumed with Moroccan spices.
- ANOTHER TAKE Spiced Chicken Tagine with Roasted Cauliflower A one-pot supper with warm spices.
- START WITH Spiced Preserved Lemons A cornerstone ingredient in Moroccan cuisine.
- THEN MAKE Spiced Chicken Tagine with Roasted Cauliflower A one-pot supper with warm spices.
- THE RECIPE Citrus Slices with Orange Flower Water, Spices & Chocolate Shavings A simple summer dessert.
- ANOTHER TAKE Savory Orange Slices A simple and surprising orange salad.
Shop Your Pantry First
(helping home cooks save money on groceries)~ onions ~
~ All Recipes, By Ingredient ~
~ How to Save Money on Groceries ~
Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences.
Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, for more scratch cooking recipes using whole, healthful ingredients, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. If you make this recipe, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below.
© Copyright Kitchen Parade
2010 & 2021
I'm definitely making those Moroccan Onions!! Those were GREAT!
ReplyDeleteI made the onion with cinnamon and turmeric last night. I'm on a MAJOR diet so only used 1 T. of olive oil and it turned out great.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious - do you serve it as a side dish? Could you/would you eat with crackers or something if an appetizer?
ReplyDeleteRandy ~ They are memorable, aren't they?!
ReplyDeleteSally ~ I've had great luck with just 1 tablespoon olive oil too. So glad you liked these!
Cathy ~ I've served them two ways, mostly as a side dish but then later, on open-face sandwiches. They're a little big for an appetizer, though I suppose if you fussed with smaller onions, they'd be a good appetizer size. Hope this helps, you've got me thinking!!
We love onions, so much in fact that a 25lb bag disappeared in about 2 months (for 2 people!). This sounds like a terrific side dish for steak.
ReplyDelete