WHY DO ONIONS MAKE US CRY?
Holding or cutting onions frees molecules stored in the cells that then come into contact with enzymes in the vegetable. This liberates a very irritating gas. To avoid it, use a very sharp knife to cut them, and avoid crushing them.
MAKES 100 G
THE VEGETABLES
3 brown onions
2 zucchinis
2 eggplants
3–4 capsicums
4 large tomatoes, not too ripe
100 g extra-virgin olive oil
salt
TO CARAMELISE
10 g icing sugar
1 Peel the onions and rinse the other vegetables. Cut the zucchini and eggplants into 5 mm-wide slices using a mandoline. Peel the capsicums with a potato peeler and remove the seeds and white membranes. Cut the vegetables in macédoine dice.
2 For each vegetable, heat about 20 g oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the vegetable and a pinch of salt, then cook, stirring frequently with a spatula to prevent it sticking. Allow 10–15 minutes for the tomatoes or zucchini, or 20–30 minutes for the eggplants, capsicums and onions.
3 When the vegetables are soft, add the icing sugar and continue cooking over a low heat for 3–5 minutes to caramelise.
4 Turn the vegetables out into a fine-mesh sieve and leave to drain for at least 1 hour to remove any excess liquid.