Cipolline in agrodolce
A classic Italian accompaniment to antipasti, roasts and cured meats. Small flat cipolline onions are browned in olive oil, then braised in a syrup of sugar and balsamic vinegar until tender inside and coated in a glossy, almost black glaze. Agrodolce, sweet and sour, is one of the oldest flavours in Italian cooking — vinegar-and-honey sauces go back to ancient Rome. The tedious part is peeling, but a quick blanch turns it into a moment.
Your own work in that: 0 min.
- Peeling 20 min
- Browning 10 min
- Braising in syrup 35 min
Step by step
0 / 8 doneBlanch the onions
Drop the onions in their skins into boiling water for 1 minute, then straight into cold water. The skin loosens from the onion and peeling 600 grams takes a quarter of an hour rather than an hour.
Ingredients: 600 g cipolline onions or small shallots · 3 tbsp olive oil · 1 tsp salt
Peel, keeping the root end
Trim just the tip, slip off the skin with your fingers and leave the root end intact, shaving off only the hairs. The root holds the layers together — without it the onions fall apart into petals in the syrup.
Ingredients: 600 g cipolline onions or small shallots · 3 tbsp olive oil · 1 tsp salt
The root stays — it holds the layers together.Brown the onions in oil
Heat the oil in a wide pan and lay the onions in a single layer. Fry 8–10 minutes, shaking, until patched golden on every side. Browning gives a caramel note the syrup alone cannot.
Ingredients: 600 g cipolline onions or small shallots · 3 tbsp olive oil · 1 tsp salt
One layer, golden patches — a caramel flavour.Caramelise the sugar
Sprinkle the onions with the sugar and fry a minute, until it melts and begins to caramelise. Stir carefully — caramel is very hot and burns within seconds.
Ingredients: 2 tbsp brown sugar · 60 ml balsamic vinegar · 2 tbsp red wine vinegar · 150 ml water · 2 pcs bay leaves · 2 pcs cloves
Add the vinegars and water
Pour in the balsamic, wine vinegar and water, add the bay leaves, cloves and salt. Mind the steam — vinegar hisses violently in hot caramel. Scrape up the browned bits from the base.
Ingredients: 2 tbsp brown sugar · 60 ml balsamic vinegar · 2 tbsp red wine vinegar · 150 ml water · 2 pcs bay leaves · 2 pcs cloves
Braise covered
Cover and braise on low heat 25 minutes, turning the onions once. They must soften right through — a knife should slide in without resistance. If the liquid disappears too fast, add a few spoons of water.
Ingredients: 2 tbsp brown sugar · 60 ml balsamic vinegar · 2 tbsp red wine vinegar · 150 ml water · 2 pcs bay leaves · 2 pcs cloves
Reduce to a glossy glaze
Uncover and cook 8–10 minutes, shaking the pan, until the syrup thickens and coats the onions in a glossy dark glaze. Watch the end — thick syrup burns quickly.
Ingredients: 2 tbsp brown sugar · 60 ml balsamic vinegar · 2 tbsp red wine vinegar · 150 ml water · 2 pcs bay leaves · 2 pcs cloves
Uncovered — until the syrup coats the onions.Transfer to a jar
Transfer the hot onions and syrup to a clean jar and cool. They keep a week in the fridge and improve daily. Serve at room temperature with cured meats, cheese, roast pork or as antipasto.
Ingredients: 600 g cipolline onions or small shallots · 3 tbsp olive oil · 1 tsp salt
Before you start
Cipolline or shallots
Cipolline are flat, sweet onions from Emilia-Romagna and around Rome. If you cannot find them, use small shallots or pearl onions — the same technique, though shallots are slightly sharper.
Not your finest balsamic
For braising ordinary aceto balsamico di Modena is enough, not an aged tradizionale. Expensive balsamic loses all its nuance in cooking. If you have a good one, drizzle it over just before serving.
Keeping longer
Keep the onions in a closed jar in the fridge, covered by the syrup — up to a week. For longer, freeze in portions for up to 3 months. Do not store them in the larder: with olive oil and little vinegar their acidity is unverified, and home processing does not protect against botulism.