Caramelized Onion Guacamole

This isn’t your run-of-the-mill guacamole! Instead of using tomatoes, herbs, and avocados, this recipe calls for quick caramelized onions in balsamic vinegar. A little sweet and wonderfully savory, Caramelized Onion Guacamole is a fan favorite at all of our house parties, and there is never any left.

2017 Update: This recipe was originally shared in June 2011. The recipe and post include new photos, as well as more tips and tricks. I hope you love this guac as much as we do!

My husband, Winston, and I have a tradition, of sorts, going in our household.

You see, we both love TexMex, and we make a point to make tacos, enchiladas, fajitas or quesadillas weekly.

Winston created this guacamole recipe during one of our first TexMex nights, and we’ve been tinkering with it ever since. It isn’t traditional, but it is super simple AND super delicious.

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The piece de resistance of this guacamole is the caramelized onion.

Yes. Caramelized onions. (You know, like the kind you’d find in French Onion Soup or Hot Onion Dip.)

I’ve gotta admit, while this is Winston’s recipe, I was the one who decided caramelized onions were going to be a part of it. And they make me oh-so-happy. So if you come to our house while we’re making guac, you’ll find me working the stovetop portion of this recipe while Winston reps the other part.

Why I love this recipe:

For those of y’all asking, “do you put onions in guacamole?”, let me tell you that the answer is YES.

However, unlike some traditional guacamoles, this does not use raw onions. The quick caramelized onions add a wonderful robustness and sweetness to the creamy avocado.

Here are some more things I love about it:

• It’s unique. It’s not traditional, but it tastes amazing and is interesting enough that you keep coming back for more.
• A crowd favorite. We make this recipe for every gathering we host in our house, and without fail, this is the first recipe to be devoured.
• It was made to be shared. Who can resist a bowl of guacamole and some chips? Nobody!

More easy dip recipes to try: Hot Honey Dip | Jalapeno Popper Dip | Buffalo Chicken Dip

What you need to make this recipe:

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• Sharp knife and wooden cutting board
• Nonstick skillet or cast iron skillet
• Wooden spoon or rubber spatula
• Large mixing bowl
• Avocado slicing tool
• Citrus juicer
• Chip and dip serving set

Here are the simple ingredients that you need to get from the store:

• Onion — for this recipe, I have used yellow onion and red onion. You can use whatever you have on hand, as I tend to use these two interchangeably for this specific recipe. The best onions to caramelize for this recipe are the ones you have on hand.
• Extra virgin olive oil — or another neutral oil to sauté the onion in.
• Balsamic vinegar — this amps up the color on the onions, as well as giving them more tart sweetness.
• Ripe avocados — we like to use large avocados for this recipe, but you can certainly scale it with smaller avocados. If yours aren’t perfectly ripe, place them in a paper bag on the countertop so they can ripen faster.
• Lime juice — squeeze your own, please and thank you. The bottled stuff works in a pinch, but it is not as vibrant as freshly squeezed.
• Spices — we use a combination of kosher salt, freshly cracked black pepper, and salt-free Creole seasoning in our homemade guacamole. Depending on how salty your tortilla chips are and how salty you like dips in general, you might need a little bit more of all of these. Taste as you go so that you don’t oversalt.

Let’s talk about other mix-ins:

As previously stated, this is not a traditional guacamole recipe. It does not call for fresh tomatoes, fresh cilantro, jalapeños or garlic.

That’s not to say that you can’t stir those into this recipe, but that is not how my family makes it.

How to make Guacamole with Balsamic Caramelized Onions

Mise en place. Before you get started on anything else, you need to finely dice the onion. Why? You don’t want large pieces of onion in the guacamole. While you’re at it, squeeze the lime juice, too.

Cook the onion. Heat a skillet on the stovetop and add some olive oil. Add the finely diced onion and cook until it becomes translucent and begins browning slightly. Drizzle in that balsamic vinegar and let the liquid cook out before removing from the stovetop and cooling.

Prep the avocados. Slice them open, pop out the pit, and scoop the flesh into a large bowl.

Mash the avocados. We like to use a fork, but you can easily use the avocado tool, linked above, or even a potato masher if you prefer. This is all personal preference. If you like your guacamole chunky, leave it chunkier. If you like it smoother, really break down the avocado flesh.

Add the seasonings. Drizzle in that fresh lime juice. Add the chilled caramelized onions. And season with salt, Creole seasoning, and black pepper.

Mix it up and enjoy! Once all the ingredients are incorporated, scoop that caramelized onion guacamole into a bowl and serve with tortilla chips, veggies, or whatever makes your heart happy.

Frequently Asked Questions

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