Looking for a great appetizer to start your holiday party or even just a football outing? Prepare this caramelized onion, bacon, and gruyere dip and you'll be making this for every party! As a host, you know guests are going to be arriving hungry, looking for food as soon as they walk in the door. You want to please your guests without having to spend all your time in the kitchen. Well, say no more because I have the perfect appetizer that you can prepare the day before. Simply make the spread the day before and pop it in the oven the following day, no hassle, guaranteed! Even if you're not hosting a gathering, make this dip for yourself and enjoy it as a great snack.

Recipe

Print Recipe

Caramelized Onion, Bacon and Gruyere Dip

Total Time45 minutes mins

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: American

Keyword: pork

Servings: 8

Author: Christine Ma

Ingredients

• 3 slices thick bacon
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 2 cups onion thinly sliced
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• ½ cup sour cream
• ½ cup gruyere cheese shredded
• 2 tablespoon fresh chives
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place bacon on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Bake for 15 minutes or until crispy. Cut into small chunks.
• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add sliced onions and saute until softened, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook until onions are caramelized, about 15 more minutes. If the pan becomes too dry, add a couple tablespoons of water. Remove onions from heat and cool.
• Mix together onions with bacon, mayonnaise, sour cream, ¼ cup gruyere, chives, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Pour dip mixture into a baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. Sprinkle ¼ cup gruyere on top. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the top is lightly browned. Serve warm with chips, crostini or crudite.

**Helpful tips and common mistakes

The most difficult step in preparing this caramelized onion bacon and gruyere dip is making the caramelized onions. Properly caramelizing onions takes at least 20 minutes. You want to slowly cook the onions over medium-low heat to prevent them from burning while still breaking down the natural sugars to create caramelized onions.

Start by heating a touch of oil over medium heat. Add the onions and saute, stirring occasionally. Monitor the heat on your stovetop, lowering the heat as needed. If you notice the pan drying out, add a little bit of water to the onions. If the onion starts to burn, reduce the heat. Make sure to stir occasionally while the onions are cooking, but not too often that the onions are constantly moving. Stirring too frequently won't give the onions enough time with the heat of the pan to cook and caramelize. About halfway through, the onions will start to brown.

As the onions become darker in color, stir more frequently. Once the onions are cooked, mix all of the ingredients and transfer them to a baking dish. Sprinkle a little extra gruyere on top and bake until the cheese is lightly browned.

I thoroughly enjoyed this caramelized onion, bacon, and gruyere dip. The sweet onions with the salty bacon and creamy texture of the cheese spread itself is a wonderful combination. I had mine with crostini, whole wheat baguette, and even tortilla chips, all appropriate dipping sides! If your guests are heavy dippers, I recommend making a large batch because this dip is addicting. Trust me, if they like the dip as much as I did (which I'm sure they will) you'll need a big portion!

For more dip inspiration check out this pumpkin beer cheese dip!