These balsamic onions are delicious as a snack and are great served with (vegan) pâté. You only need a few ingredients to make these lovely little onions in a delicious balsamic syrup.
Balsamic onions are small onions cooked in a delicious mixture of balsamic vinegar, sugar and fresh thyme. This gives the onions a syrupy texture and mild flavour.
You can use different types of onions for these balsamic onions, such as fresh pearl/silverskin onions or small, fresh pickling onions. These are not always readily available, but around Christmas you can usually find them at better greengrocers or wholesalers. But these balsamic onions can really be made with any type of small onion you can find, you can even use small shallots if that's all you have.
These tasty onions go perfectly with pâté, or a vegetarian or vegan version like this faux gras. Something a bit different to enjoy during your Christmas celebrations.
This recipe contains the following allergens. Click on the allergen to search for alternative recipes.
Made by Véronique
Published at 2023-12-05, this recipe is for 6 persons and takes 20 minutes.
Founder of Ohmydish (since 2014), she prefers to spend all day in the kitchen. Once working in the hospitality industry as an independent chef, she loves helping you gain confidence in the kitchen. With her easy-to-follow recipes, handy tips, and cooking knowledge, you'll make the most delicious dishes yourself! The recipes are accessible to everyone, from beginners to advanced home cooks.
Updated at: 2025-07-19
Peel the small onions; you may want to blanch the onions very briefly in boiling water to make them easier to peel.
Heat a little olive oil in a medium-sized frying pan and sauté the onions in it for around 5 minutes.
Add 2 tablespoons of soft brown sugar, along with 100 ml of balsamic vinegar and 2 sprigs of thyme, and let the syrup thicken gently over a low heat.
The onions are ready when they are completely soft, and the balsamic mixture has thickened to a syrup. Remove the thyme sprigs and season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!
What are fresh pearl/silverskin onions?
Pearl/silverskin onions are very small onions. They come in different colours just like larger onions. The most familiar pearl/silverskin onions are white and are usually pickled in vinegar.
Can I substitute the thyme with a different herb?
You can replace the fresh thyme with rosemary, for example, or omit the fresh herbs entirely if necessary.
Per 1 serving / piece:
| Amount | Ingredient | Allergens | Kcal | Carbs | Carbs of which sugars | Fat | Fat of which saturated | Protein | Fibers | Sodium | Iron | Calcium | Magnesium | Potassium | Phosphorus | Copper | Zinc | Iodine | Selenium | Vitamin C | Vitamin D | Vitamin A | Vitamin B1 | Vitamin B2 | Vitamin B6 | Vitamin B12 | Vitamin B11 | Vitamin E | Vitamin K | Vitamin K1 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 66.67 | gram | small onions | 24.00 | 4.07 g | 4.07 g | 0.13 g | 0.07 g | 0.80 g | 1.67 g | 6.00 mg | 0.33 mg | 20.00 mg | 6.67 mg | 116.67 mg | 28.00 mg | 0.05 mg | 0.53 mg | - | - | 4.33 mg | - | - | 0.02 mg | 0.02 mg | 0.09 mg | - | 6.67 µg | - | - | - | |
| 0.33 | tablespoon | soft brown sugar | 19.35 | 4.77 g | 4.77 g | - | - | - | - | 1.00 mg | 0.05 mg | - | - | 2.50 mg | - | - | 0.01 mg | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 16.67 | ml | balsamic vinegar | sulfites | 12.83 | 3.17 g | 3.17 g | - | - | 0.03 g | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| salt and pepper | 2.93 | 0.76 g | 0.01 g | 0.04 g | 0.02 g | 0.12 g | 0.30 g | 226.09 mg | 0.06 mg | 2.67 mg | 0.89 mg | 7.39 mg | 1.01 mg | 0.01 mg | 0.01 mg | 0.34 µg | 0.01 µg | 0.89 mg | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0.12 µg | 0.05 mg | 1.91 µg | - | |||
| olive oil | 1.35 | - | - | 0.15 g | 0.02 g | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | |||
| 0.33 | sprig of | fresh thyme | 1.63 | 0.25 g | - | 0.02 g | 0.01 g | 0.05 g | 0.14 g | 0.09 mg | 0.18 mg | 4.00 mg | 1.60 mg | 6.10 mg | 1.05 mg | 0.01 mg | 0.02 mg | - | - | 1.60 mg | - | 2.30 mg | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 62.10 | 13.01 g | 12.02 g | 0.34 g | 0.11 g | 1.01 g | 2.10 g | 233.18 mg | 0.62 mg | 26.67 mg | 9.15 mg | 132.66 mg | 30.06 mg | 0.07 mg | 0.56 mg | 0.34 µg | 0.01 µg | 6.82 mg | - | 2.30 mg | 0.02 mg | 0.02 mg | 0.09 mg | - | 6.78 µg | 0.05 mg | 1.91 µg | - | ||||
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