When you’re busy, it’s always nice to find shortcuts on things to make the work go a little faster. My mom always had cooked onions ready on hand. Having browned onions in your fridge, cuts down at least 20 minutes of cook time – and when you’re having guests to entertain or kids’ schedules to shuffle, any little break is welcome.
I generally cook down about 8-10 pounds of onions every couple of weeks. I portion it into two containers – one goes into the fridge for use now, and the other into the freezer for when the first batch runs out. Cooking onions can also make the house smell, well oniony, so I like to contain that to twice a month, if possible. These cooked onions keep well in the freezer for up to three or four months. On occasion, I’ve made some and frozen it right before I leave for a long vacation, just to help me ease into cooking once we’re back home.
Here’s how I do it :
1. Peel and slice the onions. I used a food processor but you could do it by hand as well. I used 8 pounds of onions.
2. Heat a heavy bottomed pan, and pour in about half a cup of oil. You can always add more oil later on, if you think it’s needed but this amount works perfectly for me.
3. Transfer in all the chopped onions. Cook on high heat for 15 minutes, until the onions are softened, Turn down the heat to medium low. Keep stirring it every 15 minutes, and cook until golden brown, about 2 hours. 
4. Cool, and transfer into containers to use as needed. I usually start with a 1/4 cup of cooked onions for most recipes, and add more if needed.
