Hello again there, folks. For lovers of caramelised onions, this German Zwiebelsoße (onion sauce) is a nice mix of sweet and savoury that works wonders for all sorts of meat and potato dishes.
What is Zwiebelsauce?
Zwiebelsoße in German comes from Zwiebel “onion” and Soße “sauce.” It’s a fairly common sauce/gravy that’s used to accompany all sorts of German meat and potato dishes. So long as you’re a fan of onions, you’re sure to love this sauce.
You’ll find all sorts of variations on this simple sauce across Germany and Switzerland, but as you might imagine, it’s always based on onions and a nice broth.
I’ve gone with a broth made from lager and chicken bouillon, thickened with a roux, and using slightly caramelised brown onions. You can adjust pretty much any ingredient to your liking, however.
Key ingredients for Zwiebelsauce
The ingredients for a Zwiebelsauce are simple and very versatile. Here’s what I’ve used and how you can make your own to your liking:
- Onions (Zwiebeln): brown, white, or even red onions can all make a lovely sauce. It’s up to you whether you want them chopped finely or sliced in nice half-rings; I went with the latter. They’re going to be caramelised, so by slicing them into thicker rings they’ll eventually become quite thin.
- Stock: chicken, beef, or vegetable stock or bouillon cubes give the sauce some body. Match the stock with the type of meat you plan to eat it with, if you can’t decide.
- Beer: any beer will work well here – I went with a simple lager. Amber and dark Dunkelbier can give it a nice malty flavour. Red or white wine can also be substituted, and red onion with red onions can make a great accompaniment to BBQ meats.
- Heavy Cream: my recipe doesn’t use any heavy cream, but a lot of great Zwiebelsauces do. If you’re going to add heavy cream, reduce the amount of stock and maybe use a white wine rather than a beer.
- Thickener: I’m using a simple butter and flour roux, but you can use a cornstarch slurry or even skip it if you don’t mind it runny.
- Herbs & Seasonings: I’ve only used a bay leaf and black pepper (the bouillon cubes already have a lot of salt), but you can add things like paprika, salt, garlic, thyme, or whatever else you fancy.
How is Zwiebelsauce typically served?
This sauce goes well with all sorts of meat and potato dishes. Probably the most classic pairing is with some tasty Bratwurst or your sausage of choice.
Ladle the sauce over whatever you like, really. If you’ve thickened it like my recipe calls for, it should have the consistency of a gravy.
Of course, German dishes like Frikadellen, Schnitzel, and many others pair well with a good onion sauce. Potatoes are a natural pairing, too, so things like mashed potatoes, potato pancakes, and so on will pair well. Lastly, Spätzle, pasta, or even rice are good sides for this recipe.
Tips & tricks for a great Zwiebelsauce
Firstly, caramelised onions make this sauce go from so-so to excellent. While there are a few tricks to speed up caramelisation, no matter what a good caramelisation will take time. Don’t forget to stir so that your onions don’t burn – this is especially important once their water has almost all been released and they’ve darkened by a lot.
One big variation that’s sometimes used for this recipe is to strain out all of the onions after they’ve cooked and imparted their flavour to the sauce. Doing it this way makes it a lot more uniform in texture.
Another way to prepare it is to do like you would for a French soubise, i.e. puree and blend the onions and add them back into the sauce. If you’re then going to be adding them back to a béchamel (roux with milk/cream), well, at this point you’re essentially making a soubise!
My recipe goes for about a 30 minute caramelisation. By all means, push your onions to full caramelisation for deeper flavour, but keep in mind this can take you well over half an hour. I’d recommend you at least caramelise them a little, at least 15 minutes.
To speed up the caramelisation process for onions, you can start it off on a high heat, add a splash of water and a pinch of salt, then cover for the first five minutes. Afterwards, turn it back down to medium and remember to keep stirring. Caramelised onions take time, and the result is definitely worth the patience needed.
Description
Sweet caramelised onions cooked in a savoury broth of beer and chicken stock, seasoned lightly with a little black pepper. Zwiebelsauce is a simple, versatile German gravy that's wonderful with meat and potatoes, and it can take anywhere from about 30 minutes to an hour depending how deeply you want to caramelise your onions.
Ingredients
Instructions
Mise en Place
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Slice all onions in half, then slice into thin rings. Set aside. Dissolve bouillon cubes in 300mL warm water.
Caramelising the Onions
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Melt 2 tbsp butter in a medium pot then add all onions. Cook over medium heat for about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until deeply caramelised or to your preference.
Add a pinch of salt and splash of water then cover with a lid, cooking over high temperature for the first 5 minutes to speed up caramelisation.
Building the Sauce
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Add 2 tbsp flour and stir constantly for about 2-3 minutes.
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Slowly pour in the beer, deglazing the bottom of the pot and stirring constantly. Cook on high for about 2-3 minutes to burn off the alcohol.
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Pour in the stock and add bay leaves. Reduce to a simmer until desired consistency is reached, then add pepper to taste. Serve.
Note
- Storage: can be kept refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw and reheat on the hob over medium heat.
- Variations: common variations include straining or blending the onions, using wine rather than beer, adding heavy cream, and additional seasonings such as paprika.
- Yield: this recipe should yield approximately 0.5L of sauce in total. Adjust quantities to your liking and add more stock or simmer for longer until desired quantity and consistency are reached.
- Pairings: pairs well with most German meat and potato dishes, including bratwurst, schnitzel, meatballs, potato pancakes, and mashed potatoes.
