Why Restaurant Curries Taste So Much Better Than Mine

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Master Indian Brown Onion Paste at home with this simple, flavor-packed recipe. Build rich, deep flavor into your curries and sauces with just a few pantry staples.

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What Is Indian Browned Onion Paste?

Browned Onion Paste is a simple three-ingredient paste that is used to enhance the flavor and thicken the gravies of a variety of Indian dishes. It consists of sautéed onions that are then pureed into a paste.

Technically, you could make your onion paste fresh in every instance you need it. However, I have to admit that making your browned onion paste from scratch is tedious and time-consuming. If you’ve got a hunger pang and want to eat immediately, then unfortunately if you make your browned onion paste before the rest of your meal, you’re delayed about a solid 15 to 20 minutes. If you’re preparing a dish that can be quite involved that may already take about 40 minutes to make, then this time really adds up! I highly encourage you to take some spare time out of your day to prepare a batch of browned onion paste to save lots of time and a blender to clean! You’ll see later on in this post how to store your browned onion paste in individual portions so you can grab and go!

My top 5 tips to explore your potential in the kitchen, Make Cooking Fun!, goes more details on how having an awareness of what’s in your pantry, fridge and freezer can inspire you to use up those ingredients into something new and delicious! Having had taken the time to prep your Indian Onion Paste will totally encourage you to use it so it doesn’t sit in your freezer indefinitely. Is India Destinations Unseen for you? Having the basics prepped will go a long way! Check out the list at the bottom of this post for ideas on how to use your fried onion paste, and perhaps try one of them out as part of your Live to Cook one-month challenge! You can get started on your cooking journey for free by signing up to my newsletter!

Watch the video to see in real time how to cook your Indian Browned Onion Paste from start to finish and how to store it! Additionally, if you’re not already, I’d appreciate if you subscribe to my YouTube channel and don’t forget to hit the bell button to get notified when all my video recipes are live! Let’s get cooking!

Creamy brown onion paste swirled in a white ceramic bowl on a wooden surface.

Tools for Fried Indian Onion Paste

Cutting board: To chop your onions.
Sharp chef’s knife: The right knife will help make the chopping process effortless!
Non-stick pan: To sauté the onions with ghee.
Wooden spoon: To stir the onions in the pan when they are sautéing.
Blender: To puree the sautéed onions.
Ramekins: To store your browned onion paste if using it immediately!

Brown onion paste piped into a white ramekin with fresh onions in mesh bag on plate behind it.

What Is Onion Paste Made Of?

Check out the FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD at the bottom of this post or press the “Jump to Recipe” button to see all ingredient quantities and

Ghee: To cook our onions.
Onions: I’m using sliced red onions here. Technically you can use any onion of your choice, but red onions will work best here.
Salt: To season the paste.
Water: Use enough as needed to completely blend the sautéed onions and to create a smooth puree.

How to Make Onion Paste

Slice your onions thinly. In the meanwhile, heat a large pan or wok on medium heat and add the ghee.

Hands slicing purple onion thinly on a white cutting board in a kitchen workspace.

Hands slicing a red onion thinly on a white cutting board with knife

Once the ghee is hot, add the thinly sliced onions, along with the salt.

Thinly sliced red onions and ginger cooking in ghee in a dark pan on stovetop.

Wooden spoon stirring sliced red onions in a pan with ghee during the browning process.

Continue to sauté as the onions cook and turn soft and golden brown. Keep stirring the onions to ensure they cook evenly, as they cook, they will reduce in volume. After around 20-30 minutes, the onions should have browned completely.

Thinly sliced red onions being sautéed in ghee in a dark pan with a wooden spoon.

Thinly sliced pink onions sautéing in ghee in a pan, beginning to soften and turn golden brown.

Transfer the browned onions to a food processor and add 1/4 to 1/2 Cup of water, add less to start and puree to a smooth paste.

Browned onions being processed into smooth paste in food processor with water added.

Brown onion paste being pureed in a food processor with water.

Brown onion paste being pureed in a food processor with visible texture and consistency.

Portion out the onion paste as needed and use in any recipe you desire.

Caramelized onions with garlic and spices being pureed into paste in a skillet with a wooden spoon.

Golden brown onion paste being scooped from a pan with a ladle, garnished with green herbs.

TIPS for Nailing This Onion Paste Recipe

Be patient while sautéing the onions so that they fully caramelize and release their flavors.
Be sure to thinly slice the onions so that they can cook faster.
Use a big wok or pot to provide a larger surface area to allow the onions to cook evenly and quicker.
Use salt to help cook down the onions and assist them in releasing their moisture.

Finished brown onion paste in a white ramekin with fresh red onions on a plate in the background.

How to Use This Onion Paste for Cooking

Here are a few examples of how you can incorporate this paste into your favourite Indian dishes:

Chicken Kofta Curry: In this recipe, I made a variation by also adding ginger, garlic, and green chilies.
Homestyle Chicken Curry: In the original recipe, I use sliced onions and sauté them. However, after making the paste, I followed the recipe and substituted the sautéed onions for the onion paste. This sped up the cooking process and transformed the chicken curry into a more restaurant-style curry because the gravy was paler and slightly creamier. A simple swap in ingredients and cooking can totally transform a dish!
Slow-Cooked Instant Pot Chicken Changezi: Again, a variation of this simple paste is made with the addition of cashews and almonds to add some body and creaminess to the paste.

How to Store▼

The best way is to store the browned onion is to first portion out the paste based on the number of onions used to make the paste. If you used 4 onions to make the paste, divide it into 4 equal portions and store them in a freezer-safe bag. This way if you are using a recipe that needs 2 onions, you can take out 2 portions. And the best part, you save the 20-30 minutes making your dish that needs sauteed onions, since that pre-prepared paste will taste amazing.

Brown onion paste portioned into small plastic freezer bags for storage.

Refrigerator

You can store the onion paste in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days.

Freezer

Be sure to place the portioned out browned onion paste in a freezer-safe bag and store in the freezer for up to 6 months. Be sure to label the bag to keep a track of the preparation date.

Let me know what you think of this recipe in the comments! If you’ve tried this recipe, be sure to post it on social media and tag it with #cookingwithanadi and mention me @cooking.with.anadi. Thank you!

Recipe by Anadi Misra

Transform Your Dishes with Indian Brown Onion Paste

Master Indian Brown Onion Paste at home with this simple, flavor-packed recipe. Build rich, deep flavor into your curries and sauces with just a few pantry staples.

5.0 · 1 rating

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10 min

Prep

30 min

Cook

40 min

Total

servings

makes ¾ cup

easy

Level

Ingredients

Tap any quantity to scale

(30 ml) ghee · make your ownShop →
medium red onions, thinly sliced
(3 g) saltShop →

Instructions

1
Heat large pan or wok on medium heat and add the ghee. Once the ghee is hot, add the thinly sliced onions, along with the salt.
Heat large pan or wok on medium heat and add the ghee. Once the ghee is hot, add the thinly sliced onions, along with the salt.
2
Continue to saute as the onions cook and turn soft and golden brown. Keeping stirring the onions to ensure they cook evenly, as they cook, they will reduce in volume. After around 20-30 minutes, the onions should have browned completely.
Continue to saute as the onions cook and turn soft and golden brown. Keeping stirring the onions to ensure they cook evenly, as they cook, they will reduce in volume. After around 20-30 minutes, the onions should have browned completely.
3
Transfer the browned onions to a food processor and add ¼–½ cup of water, add less to start and puree to a smooth paste. Portion out the onion paste as needed and use in any recipe you desire.
Transfer the browned onions to a food processor and add ¼–½ cup of water, add less to start and puree to a smooth paste. Portion out the onion paste as needed and use in any recipe you desire.

Nutrition per serving

Calories

Protein

Carbs

Fat

Fiber

Sugar

218mg

Sodium

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Tested & written in Anadi’s kitchen

What Is Indian Browned Onion Paste?

Tools for Fried Indian Onion Paste

What Is Onion Paste Made Of?

How to Make Onion Paste

TIPS for Nailing This Onion Paste Recipe