I always thought it was caramelize but then today I read this somewhere
Onions require 30 to 45 minutes of cooking to caramelize
But what if I just wanted to brown something and not overcook it.
For example, what if I sauté chopped onions for 5 to 10 minutes and they get all browned? What's the exact word to represent that?
Note: I am not interested in onions per se, but the word to represent "brown".
[Notes from comments:]
- I'm least interested in the cooking part here. I want an accurate English word to substitute for "brown" as a verb.
- Is there a legitimate single-word substitute?
Best Answer
Sorry to break this to you, but the word is "brown". "Caramalize" is used for some foods, such as onions, but not, eg, for most meats.
BTW, I'm not much of a cook but I've watched enough cooking shows to know that, with regard to onions, there's a broad range of opinions as to what "caramalize" or "brown" means -- some would do this only a minute or two in a hot skillet, others would "simmer" for 15 minutes (at a slightly lower temperature). If it's important one should specify more precisely somehow.
But with meats there's not as much variation.