Sharing a game day appetizer today that will be devoured in minutes: beer braised onion & cheddar dip. Sweet onions cooked down until golden and caramelized with beer and thyme for lots of rich flavor. They’re folded with mayo, dijon, a little cayenne, and lots of cheddar cheese. Baked until golden and bubbling, then served with pretzel roll toasts for dipping. It’s a decadent dip that everyone will request over and over again!
With football season in full swing, it seems like everyone is getting together to watch the games on Sunday, and therefore…some really good food is definitely in order! Around our house, all the boys will gather around the tv and I’ll be in the kitchen…making what usually ends up being a very large spread of recipes. While we have lots of favorites, this beer braised onion & cheddar dip always gets devoured first.
You’ll start by caramelizing the onions and cooking them low and slow with lots of beer and fresh thyme. This is really the main step of the recipe. Once that’s complete, it’s a simple mix of cheddar cheese and a few other ingredients that gets loaded into a cast-iron skillet and baked until bubbling. So much flavor. So very delicious.
I like to serve the dip with some pretzel roll toasts (nothing fancy…simply sliced up store-bought pretzel rolls toasted in the oven until crisp). The pretzel flavor goes so well with the beer and is just perfect for game day. You, and hopefully everyone you’re serving, will LOVE this!
PrintBeer Braised Onion & Cheddar Dip
a simple beer braised caramelized onion dip with melted cheddar cheese & pretzel roll toasts for dipping
servings: 6
Ingredients
- olive oil
- 5 large sweet onions, thinly sliced (about 3 lbs total sliced)
- ½ tsp kosher salt, plus more as needed
- 1 (12 oz) bottle beer (use your favorite)
- 1 bunch thyme sprigs, tied together with kitchen twine for easy removal
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- ½ lb shredded cheddar cheese
- ½ lb pretzel rolls, sliced ¼” thick
- freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Heat a large dutch oven (or heavy-bottomed pot) over medium-high heat. Add enough olive oil to generously coat the bottom. Add the onions and salt. Cook for about 15 minutes until golden color develops, stirring often.
- Stir in the beer and add the bunch of thyme. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook for about 45 minutes, until the onions are deeply caramelized and the beer has reduced. Remove the thyme. Turn off the heat and let cool for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the mayonnaise, dijon mustard, and cayenne pepper. Whisk until smooth. Fold in the onions and cheddar cheese. Transfer the mixture to a greased 9” cast-iron skillet. Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden and bubbling.
- Meanwhile, coat the sliced pretzel rolls with a drizzle of olive oil and place onto a sheet pan in one, even layer. Season with a pinch of salt. Bake for about 10 minutes until toasted.
- Remove the dip from the oven and let cool for about 5 minutes. Use a spoon to stir the dip right before serving. Garnish with any extra thyme leaves and a few cracks of black pepper. Serve with the pretzel roll toasts alongside for dipping.
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I made this yesterday and we had it for dinner with a salad and a screening of Sleepy Hollow. I used 2lbs of sweet onions and a stout because that was all we had on hand. Also, an 8-inch cast-iron skillet served nicely. It was quite labor intensive but really worth the effort. Rich and REALLY delicious! Thanks for the recipe!
Woooah, this looks DIVINE. Now I need to find an excuse to indulge in this!
Thank you!! It honestly is so indulgent, but so worth it. I like making it on the weekends…the perfect time to indulge!
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