Slow-Cooker Caramelized Onion Dip

Prep 30 min
Total 10 hr 30 min
Servings 15

With sweet, melty onions mixed into a creamy base and brought to life with a couple of savory ingredients, this luscious dip will keep everyone hovering around the bowl and, in between bites, talking to each other about how good it is! And since that’s what parties are all about, we think this is the recipe you need next time you entertain. The inspiration behind this recipe was the crowd-favorite onion dip that you buy in a tub at the grocery store, but our goal wasn’t simply to replicate. While we wanted to hit the same savory and rich notes of the original dip, we also wanted to create something new that would be worth the effort to make from scratch, without demanding too much effort. This wasn’t too big a challenge for the Betty Crocker Test Kitchen experts, who came up with the idea of caramelizing onions in a slow cooker, so all you really have to do is chop the onions and forget about them for the rest of the day. With such a flavorful base, it doesn’t take much to round out the recipe: cream cheese, a little mayo, fresh herbs, a dash of soy sauce—that’s really all there is to it. Next time you have people coming around, give this recipe a try.

By Betty Crocker Kitchens

Updated October 27, 2019

Ingredients

Dip

8

cups thinly sliced sweet or yellow onions (about 3 lb)
2

tablespoons butter, melted
1/2

teaspoon salt
1/2

teaspoon pepper
2

packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened and cubed
1

tablespoon soy sauce
1/2

cup mayonnaise
1

tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves
1

teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves

Toasts

2

cans (11 oz each) Pillsbury™ refrigerated French bread
4

tablespoons butter, melted

Steps

Hide Images

1

Spray 5-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Mix onions, 2 tablespoons melted butter, the salt and pepper in slow cooker. Cover; cook on Low heat setting 10 to 12 hours or until onions are very tender and browned.
2

Drain mixture, and return onions to slow cooker. Discard liquid. Stir cream cheese and soy sauce into onion mixture in slow cooker.
3

Cover; cook on Low heat setting 15 minutes. Stir in mayonnaise; top with parsley and thyme. Serve with toasts.
4

At least 2 hours before serving, make the toasts. Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 15x10x1-inch pan with cooking spray. Bake French bread loaves 24 to 26 minutes or until browned. Cool completely, at least 30 minutes. Cut each loaf into 1/2-inch slices. Brush slices on both sides, using 4 tablespoons melted butter. Bake half of the slices at a time on pan 15 to 20 minutes, turning once, until deep golden brown and crispy.

Caramelizing onions in the slow cooker is our new favorite trick. Chop your onions, throw them in the pot, and forget about them—either overnight or all day. In the meantime, your house will smell so good, the neighbors might just turn up to ask, “What’s for dinner?” Onions can be caramelized up to two days in advance. After cooking, drain onions—don’t throw away the liquid; it can add flavor to other dishes, like soup, stew, beans, one-pot pasta and more—and store covered in the fridge. When you’re ready to make the dip, microwave uncovered on High in 30-second intervals, stirring after each, until hot. Return hot onions to the slow cooker, and continue with the recipe, as written.
Vidalia and Maui sweet onions are naturals for caramelizing, but if they aren’t available at your grocery store, plain yellow onions will do just fine. To make the slicing go quicker, look for larger onions.
After draining, caramelized onions have plenty of delicious uses—use them to top a burger or make them the base of your French onion soup. There’s no need to drain the onions if you’re using them in a soup. Their juices will add tons of rich flavor.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: About 1/4 Cup Dip and 3 Toasts

Calories: 320
Calories from Fat: 190

% Daily Value

Total Fat: 21g; 33%
Saturated Fat 10g 50% Trans Fat 1/2g
Cholesterol: 45mg; 15%
Sodium: 500mg; 21%
Potassium: 140mg; 4%
Total Carbohydrate: 27g; 9%
Dietary Fiber 1g 5% Sugars 5g
Protein: 6g

% Daily Value*:

Vitamin A: 10%; 10%
Vitamin C: 4%; 4%
Calcium: 4%; 4%
Iron: 6%; 6%

Exchanges:

1/2 Starch; 0 Fruit; 1 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Skim Milk; 0 Low-Fat Milk; 0 Milk; 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Very Lean Meat; 0 Lean Meat; 1/2 High-Fat Meat; 3 1/2 Fat;