Paula Deans Vidalia Onion Casserole
Large Sweet Vidalia Onions cooked on top of the stove and mixed with eggs, milk, cheese and Ritz Crackers. They are baked in the oven then topped with even more buttery Ritz Crackers. This makes for a great side dish or meal.
A few years back my husband and I vacationed in Savannah Georgia. After we ate at The Lady and Sons restaurant, we shopped in the small store where I bought two of Paula’s cookbooks and a Christmas ornament. When we got home I put the cookbooks with my cookbook collection and forgot about them. The other day I pulled them out and I decided to try this recipe as Vidalia Onions are at the grocery store now and taste so good.
Anyone that follows me knows how detailed I write my recipes. That way a beginner cook will be able to understand exactly how to make one of my recipes. I was so disappointed by the vagueness of Paula’s recipes. Her recipes didn’t tell what size pans to use or even the temperature to sauté the onions, however, this Vidalia Onion Casserole was very good.
Ingredients
Peel and quarter the onions.
Fill a large stock pot with water and bring to
a boil over high heat. Add the quartered onion
pieces and bring back to a boil. Reduce heat
to a simmer. Simmer until the onions
are tender and fall apart then drain.
While the onions simmer, crush the Ritz
crackers. I do this in the package by hand
but you can crush them however you want.
In a small bowl whisk together
the egg and milk with a fork.
Melt 4 Tbsp. of butter in a large skillet.
Sauté the onions until the butter is gone and
the onions aren’t watery. Remove the skillet
from the heat and let it cool a few minutes.
Add the egg mixture, cheese, salt, pepper
and half of the crushed crackers to the
onions and stir to combine.
Butter a 4 quart casserole dish
and add the onion mixture.
Bake uncovered in a preheated
375 degree oven for 35 minutes.
In a small bowl melt the remaining 3 Tbsp.
of butter. Add the remaining crushed
crackers and combine.
Sprinkle crackers on top of the casserole.
Bake another 15 minutes or until
the top is golden brown.
Then serve.
Paula Deans Vidalia Onion Casserole
http://www.InDianesKitchen.com
Ingredients
- 4 large Vidalia onions
- 7 Tbsp. butter, divided
- 3 large eggs
- 5 oz. evaporated milk
- 1 tube Ritz Crackers
- 1½ cups grated cheddar cheese (I used shredded)
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Peel and quarter the Vidalia onions.
- Fill a large stock pot with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the quartered onions and bring back to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and simmer until the onions are tender and the segments fall apart then drain.
- While the onions simmer, crush the Ritz crackers.
- In a small bowl whisk the eggs and milk together with a fork.
- Melt 4 Tbsp. of the butter in a large skillet. Add the onions and sauté until the butter is absorbed and the onions are no longer watery. Remove the skillet from the heat and let cool a few minutes.
- Add the egg mixture, cheese, salt, pepper and half of the crushed Ritz crackers to the onions the stir to combine.
- Butter a 4 quart casserole dish and add the onion mixture.
- Bake uncovered for 35 minutes.
- In a small bowl melt the remaining 3 Tbsp. of butter in the microwave. Add the remaining cracker crumbs and stir well with a fork to combine.
- Sprinkle the buttery crumbs evenly on top of the baked casserole. Bake an additional 15 minutes or until the top is golden brown then serve.
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Categories: Casseroles, Cheese, Eggs, Milk Products, Vegetables/Slaws/Salads
So hard steps you have taken.
Not really hard steps, just a lot of steps. This really was an easy recipe and very good.
Okay.
Don’t you just hate it when recipes are imprecise.
YES!!!! I had no idea what size casserole to use. Luckily it turned out great with the 4 qt. but it was just a guess.
I love the story that precedes the recipe! Your directions are always so easy to follow, you make an average cook feel confident in the kitchen! I love that. C
Thank you Cheryl!!!! That is the whole purpose of my blog. That means so much to hear you say that!
Vidalia onions are so delicious; I bet this dish is too. It really has a Southern appeal.
It sure was and then with Ritz Crackers….YUM! Thank you!
That looks really good.
I’m on a cheesecake kick this week. 🙂
Oh heck I am on a cheesecake kick every week! We were given a gift certificate to the Cheesecake factory for dinner and we used it to bring home an entire cheesecake! 🤣😂🤣😂🤣 We sliced it and put waxed paper between the slices and froze it. Every few days we took out a couple pieces and moaned with pleasure.
My southern husband is going to LOVE this. Thank you for sharing Diane!
I am SO glad I know we did. You’re welcome.
Thank you!
Looks great. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you and you’re welcome.
Good stuff!!
Oh yes!!! Thanks!
I bet a stick of butter would make that heaven lol!!
Butter and Ritz Crackers everything is better with Ritz!
Thanks for sharing! 🤍
yummy!
Thanks so much!
Looks like another winner! I appreciate the instructions to do the casserole topping too.
Thanks and your welcome Ab.
Oh wow this looks really good.
You can’t go wrong with onions and buttery Ritz Crackers! lol Thank you Christy!
My mom loved Vidalia onions and when our grocery store first started carrying them in the early 90s, it would be for one or two months only – we’d scoop them up and keep them in the fridge til they got soft and couldn’t use them. This sounds like something my mom would have liked a lot. Me too – I liked Vidalia onions and also like Ritz crackers.
Vidalia Onions are so good. You’re right though, they don’t keep very long. I had mine for about 2 weeks and I had to throw 3 out that were bad. We bought a bag of them and I’m guessing the grocery store had them a while. I used them in my cucumber sweet and sour sauce too.
That’s a shame. We used to buy a couple of items at the farm market made with Vidalia onions that were tasty – Vidalia Onion Pickles and hot dog relish.
Oh yum I would try the pickles for sure! Not a relish fan though.
I’m not a relish fan either and not really a pickle fan either to be honest, but they were small jars and went like wildfire at the produce market.
I bet!
This sounds very good!
It really was and I had this for a meal. Thank you Janet!
No doubt with all your expertise you can read between the lines…looks amazing!
Thanks Laurel! Expertise I wish…lol
This looks so good. I would love to try this recipe. It looks easy to follow. I love casseroles so comforting. 🥰
Thank you you it was so good I made it a meal.
I can’t wait to make this one!
Enjoy because Vidalia onions are so sweet and what can I say……RITZ crackers. lol
This is so appetising 😀😋👌
Can’t go wrong with Vidalia onions. We look forward to them every year. Thank you Shaheen!
Diane, this looks amazing! I’ve printed off your recipe and have shared it on Pinterest. My bet is we’ll be trying this one in the near future. Onions and cheese, plus some crunchy bits, make for a yummy combination!
Thank you for breaking down the recipe. I’m sorry you have been disappointed with Paula’s cookbook. I’ve run into that myself before actually. It is frustrating, I agree! Just because they know what size pan (etc), doesn’t mean the reader will. Every recipe is so different. Why not mention those details? Your way is definitely the best way!
Thanks for simplifying the joy of cooking. It’s always fun coming here to read your blog! ♥
Holly you are always so kind! Thank you so much and I hope you enjoy this as much as I did. You’re welcome! 💕
I appreciate your detailed recipes, even though I’m a pretty experienced cook at this point. Vague recipes are nobody’s friend 🙂
I agree! Thank you!
Vidalia onions are my favourite!
I wish they were available all year long!