Guinness Onions - By Justin F. Brunelle

I've been trying to eat healthy since June stuffs me full of sweets. However, vegetables must be improved upon in any way possible. Over the weekend, we cooked some blackened tilapia on the grill and needed an accompaniment of the veggie kind. I decided on sauteed sweet onions. But, sweet onions alone are wimpy. I had to man-ify them.

I like cooking veggies in a cast-iron skillet on a charcoal grill. I also wanted a sweet flavor to my onions, with a semi-caramelized flavor. I also needed my onions to not stick to the skillet. Thus, my ingredient list was born. I added about 4-5 tablespoons of [fake] butter as my anti-stick agent, ~1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce to sweeten the onions a bit and complement the smokey flavor of the charcoal, and about 1 small clove of garlic (minced) to round out the traditional ingredients. The other two "secret" ingredients are what make the onions really stand out. I add about 2 tablespoons of Weber's Boston Bay Seasoning and about half a bottle (6 oz.) of Guinness Black Lager. The Boston Bay seasoning is a creamier version of Old Bay, so it adds some sweetness while still providing a bit of the peppery, salty flavor that I like in my onions and on my fish. 

The Guinness Black Lager is particularly interesting. It's a relatively cheap beer (~$7 per 6-pack), so you aren't poring out too much money, and it isn't a particularly "good" beer (although it is delightful), so you don't have to feel too guilty. (It only got a 70 on the Beer Advocate website, the cellar of the "Average" category.) The most relevant property of this beer is its sweetness and absence of any discernible hops; essentially, it's the more carbonated brother of Guinness Draught. The sweet, fresh, malty flavor of the beer really comes out in the onions after reducing the beer down. 

The first step is to get the grill up to medium-hot direct heat and toss the skillet on. The rest is super simple (hard to screw up if you have a tough time concentrating after disposing of the other half bottle of beer). Just dump all the ingredients in the pan. I like to allow the butter to melt and then add the beer. This, of course, makes it foam up and smell really nice, but doesn't offer any real benefit other than entertainment value. 

I cover the grill and open the vents to keep everything at the medium-hot level and stir the onions every few minutes. They will start to soften and turn the color of the Guinness.

After about 20-30 minutes, the onions will all be very soft and brown. There will be a Guinness reduction left in the bottom of the pan. This makes a great "sauce" that drips out of the back of fish tacos. You can strain this if you wish, but I don't see the benefit. As soon as I remove the pan from heat, I put the onions in another container so they don't get too crispy.

June didn't eat these in her tacos, she ate them as a side dish. They are awesome onions that take on a smokey, sweet, savory taste from the beer and smoke. The Boston Bay seasoning adds the extra peppery taste to them that makes them a great addition to an otherwise mellow dish. I highly recommend them.

-- Guest Blogger: Justin F. Brunelle