Our Tennessee onions are sliced onion rings that are roasted until soft and jammy, then covered in a three cheese blend and broiled until the top is deep golden brown and bubbling. This makes for a unique and delicious Thanksgiving or Christmas side dish and it's super easy to make!
Our New Favorite Holiday Side Dish
If you've never heard of Tennessee Onions, they're a super simple Southern side dish that combines roasted onions and cheese to form a sweet, savory, and slight spicy casserole that's perfect for the holidays.
But when we read through the reviews on the popular versions, the same two complaints kept coming up: a pool of butter and onion liquid in the bottom of the dish, and cheese that never really browned. Onions are mostly water, and if you cover them with foil and cheese from the start, that water has nowhere to go. So we roasted the onions roast uncovered first to drive off moisture, then we added the cheese, baked until it was browning, then finished it off at the end with a broil.
We also leaned into dried herbs instead of fresh, because it's just simpler and easier that way. Serve it with our shaved brussels sprout salad with candied pecans and brown sugar glazed carrots and you've got a side dish selection that will make every guest happy!
If you love onions as much as we do, our onion tarte tatin and bacon cheeseburger stuffed onions should be next on your list.
xoxo, Lexi & Beth
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Key Ingredients Needed for Tennessee Onions
- Sweet onions: Vidalia onions are traditional here, but any sweet onion works.
- Beef base: We added a little bit of Better than Bouillon to the melted butter the rings are tossed in, to give them a touch of french onion flavor.
- Cayenne: Just a small amount is all you need. We learned the hard way that it's easy to overdo here, so ⅛ teaspoon gives warmth, not heat.
- Cheeses: We used a blend of low-moisture mozzarella, sharp cheddar, and parmesan. Cheese like gouda, havarti, or even provolone would also work here.
Equipment note: You'll need a very large mixing bowl (plus a second bowl roughly the same size to use as a lid) for seasoning the onions, and a 9x13 baking dish.
How to Make Tennessee Onions
Season the onions
Preheat the oven to 400˚F and butter a 9x13 baking dish. Slice the onions ½ inch thick and separate them into rings, keeping the rings intact as much as you can. To the biggest bowl you own, add the onions and the melted butter and toss to coat the rings.
Sprinkle all of the seasonings over the top, then set a second bowl of about the same size upside down over the first one and shake the whole thing like a giant cocktail shaker until the onions are evenly coated. It's the fastest way to season this many onions without breaking the rings.
Roast the onions
Arrange the rings in the buttered dish so they lie mostly flat. They don't need to be in perfect rows, but don't pile them in a heap either, since the cheese needs ridges to brown on. Roast uncovered for 35 to 40 minutes, until the onions are very soft and starting to color at the edges. If they begin to brown too quickly, lay a sheet of foil loosely over the top for the rest of the time. The goal of this step is to cook off as much of the onions' moisture as possible, so you want the foil to act as a shield, not a lid.
When the onions come out, check the bottom of the dish. If there's a pool of liquid, sop it up with a few paper towels.
Add the cheese and broil
Over the onions, scatter the cheeses. Bake for another 15 to 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and just starting to brown in spots. Then switch the oven to broil and let it go until the top is deep golden brown and bubbling, watching carefully as it cooks. Let the dish rest for about 5 minutes before serving.
Top Tips from the CK Test Kitchen!
- Use the biggest bowl you own. Two and a half pounds of onion rings take up a lot of space, and the two-bowl shake only works if there's room for them to move around.
- Don't skip the paper towel blot. Even with the uncovered roast, sweet onions release a surprising amount of liquid.
- If your onions are browning too quickly: Lay the foil loosely over the top. Crimping it tightly traps steam, which we're trying to avoid.
- Keep the rings intact. Bigger, whole rings hold their shape better and give the cheese more surface area to brown on. This is why we slice a full ½ inch thick and shake rather than stir.
- Make ahead: You can roast and blot the onions up to a day ahead, then cover and refrigerate. Add the cheese and bake straight from the fridge, adding about a few minutes to the second bake before broiling.
- Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in a 350˚F oven for about 15 minutes, until the cheese remelts and it's completely heated through. We don't recommend freezing these, since the onions get watery and the cheese separates when thawed.
Variations
- Swap the cheese: Gouda or Gruyère in place of the mozzarella is another option, and a little more French onion soup-y.
- Make it vegetarian: Leave out the beef base and use a vegetable base instead, or just add an extra ¼ teaspoon of salt.
- Add bacon: Crumble a few slices of crispy bacon over the cheese before it goes under the broiler.
- Add a crunch: A handful of torn, buttered baguette pieces tucked between the onions before the cheese turns this into something very close to a French onion soup casserole.
- Serve these: at your Thanksgiving or Christmas table next to turkey, ham or prime rib, but they're just as good on a regular weeknight with steak or a rotisserie chicken. Leftovers are fantastic spooned over mashed potatoes, piled onto a burger, or tucked into a grilled cheese.
More Holiday Side Dishes You'll Love
- Dauphinoise Potatoes
- Parmesan Crusted Brussels Sprouts
- Fondant Sweet Potatoes
- Onion Tarte Tatin
- Garlic Herb Fan Rolls
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Recipe
Tennessee Onions
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Butter a 9x13 baking dish on the bottom and sides.
- Slice the onions ½ inch thick, then separate each slice into individual rings. Keep the rings whole as much as you can, but a few broken ones are fine.
- Whisk the beef base into the melted butter until smooth. To a very large bowl, add the onion rings and the butter mixture and toss until every ring is coated. Sprinkle the thyme, parsley, oregano, dry mustard, smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt, pepper and cayenne over the top. Set a second bowl of about the same size upside down over the first and shake until the onions are evenly coated.
- Arrange the rings in the buttered dish so they lie mostly flat and intact. They don't need to be in perfect rows, but don't pile them in a heap.
- Roast, uncovered, for 35 to 40 minutes, until the onions are very soft and starting to color at the edges. If they begin to brown too quickly, lay a sheet of foil loosely over the top for the remaining time. (The goal is to drive off moisture, so don't crimp the foil tightly.)
- Remove the dish from the oven. If there is liquid pooled in the bottom, sop it up with paper towels. Too much liquid will make the cheese gummy underneath.
- Scatter the mozzarella and cheddar over the onions, then the Parmesan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and just starting to brown.
- Switch the oven to broil and broil until the top is deep golden brown and bubbling, watching closely the whole time. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
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