Creamed pearl onions are a sweet and earthy addition to Thanksgiving dinner or a festive side for Christmas. These tender, bite-sized onions are smothered in a rich and savory creamy sauce. Whether you use heavy cream or coconut milk for a dairy-free option, this recipe is naturally gluten-free—no flour needed. Plus, I’ll share my simple trick for peeling pearl onions without the hassle. Add this classic dish to your holiday table with ease and wait for the rave reviews.
Old fashioned creamed pearl onions were a mandatory side dish on my family's holiday menu, but going gluten-free meant no white flour for a traditional white sauce. Updating my family recipe, this delicious recipe is now gluten-free and can be made without dairy if desired. And not just for Thanksgiving, creamed onions are good with an Easter ham or a Christmas roast too.
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Why You'll Like This Recipe
- It's a classic holiday recipe.
- A nice side dish for roast turkey, roast beef, or ham.
- Make pearl onions ahead of time and reaheat for dinner.
Recipe Ingredients
- Pearl onions: Use fresh pearl onions (or boiler onions). Frozen are an option if you can't get fresh. More information below on size.
- Milk: Either heavy cream or full fat canned coconut milk for no dairy.
- Cornstarch: Helps to thicken the sauce. For grain-free, use arrowroot.
- Balsamic vinegar: For a little depth of flavor, optional
- Thyme: I prefer fresh thyme but dried is a fine swap. Use ⅓ the amount for dried.
- Pepper: I use white pepper so you can't see the black flecks, but either works. White pepper disappears.
- Nutmeg: Provides a hint of nuanced flavor, optional. Ground mace works too.
- Grated Parmesan cheese: Adds a savory richness and a little salty flavor. For vegan or dairy-free, omit or use a vegan parmesan cheese replacement.
See the recipe card for all ingredients and measurements, salt and pepper.
For another terrific onion side dish, try these roasted red onions with balsamic.
Substitutions and Variations
- Add cooked green peas before serving.
- Add chopped crisply cooked bacon.
- If you can't get pearl onions, look for small boiler onions or cipollini onions.
- Vary the cheese.
Enjoy caramelized onions in the French onion soup recipe with cheesy croutons.
Chef's note: What are pearl onions? Pearl onions are baby onions. They are called pearl because of their small size compared to regular onions. They usually come in netted bags or clamshell containers, in the produce department. No pearl onions? Look for small boiler onions. They're a perfect substitute and just a little larger, about an inch in diameter. Pearl onions come in colors; white, gold, and purple. Boilers are very small white onions, and both are mild. The boilers may need to cook a little longer.
Recipe Instructions
Start by setting up an ice bath for the onions. Fill a large bowl half full of ice and fill with cold water.
Step 1: Peel the onions. Bring a large pot of water (5-6 quarts) to a boil. Add the onions and cook for 1 - 1 ½ minutes. Remove immediately with a slotted spoon or small strainer to the ice batch to chock and stop the cooking process. Chill onions until cold, about 3 minutes. Drain onions.
Step 2: With a paring knife, trim a small piece of the root end off the onion then slip the skin off to peel.
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Step 3: Make the sauce. Add the cornstarch to a small dish with an equal amount of water and blend until smooth. Add the cream or coconut milk to a 3 quart pan and bring to a boil, turn the heat down a bit, add the cornstarch slurry and whisk until smooth and thickened. Cook 1 minute to remove any raw cornstarch taste.
Step 4: Stir in ⅓ cup water, then add the onions, balsamic, thyme, salt, pepper. Cover the pan and cook on low, simmering gently for 15-20 minutes until the onions are tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp paring knife. When done, stir in parmesan and nutmeg.
Chef's tip for no-dairy creamed pearl onions: Coconut milk is a great option and there is no coconut taste! I made a batch one Thanksgiving and had multiple people taste them. They loved them. I asked, do you taste coconut? They looked at me, like what? Of course not. They were delicious.
Creamed pearl onions are great served alongside these green beans almondine, another classic, always welcome side dish.
Make Ahead Tips
Peel the onions a day or two ahead of time and finish them the day of serving, or prepare them entirely and reheat for serving. Use a small pan over low heat, covered, or put them in a dish in the oven at 350°F, covered, until they are hot. Add just a splash of milk, cream, or water if they need to be loosened up.
Serving Suggestions
Creamed pearl onions are terrific served with a Thanksgiving turkey, a Christmas roast, and Easter ham, or just everyday roast bone in chicken breasts.
For color, sprinkle the top with finely chopped fresh parsley or chives.
Storage
Stored in an airtight container, leftover onions will last 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, you can use frozen pearl onions. Cook according to package directions and start and the step where you make the sauce and incorporate the onions and any additional seasonings.
Yes you must peel pearl onions. Here is the trick to peeling pearl onions. Blanch the onions for 1 minute in boiling water then shock in an ice bath to stop the cooking process. Trim the root end a tiny bit then slip the peel off with a paring knife. It's not hard at all, just takes a few minutes.
Cheese is a great addition to creamed pearl onions. Try grated parmesan, Gruyere, Manchego, even cheddar cheese.
More Great Side Dish Recipes
If you love onions, try the French Onion soup with cheesy golden Parmesan croutons.
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📖 Recipe
Creamed Pearl Onions
Equipment
- Medium pot to blanch onions 5-6 quart
- Medium pot to cook onions 3 quart (this is a saucier if you don't have one)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds pearl onions
- 1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch or arrowroot starch
- ⅓ cup cup water
- 1 cup heavy cream or full fat coconut milk
- 1-2 teaspoons Balsamic vinegar
- 1 ½ teaspoons fresh chopped thyme leaves
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper or black pepper, but the white disappears
- ¼ teaspoon of granulated garlic
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese or vegan cheesy sprinkle optional
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Instructions
Blanch and peel onions
- Fill a medium pot (5-6 quart) ¾ full with cold water and bring to a boil. Drop in pearl onions and cook for 1 ½ minutes. While they are boiling, get a big bowl out, fill half way with ice and water to create an ice bath. Move the onions to the ice bath with a slotted spoon or small sieve. Allow them to cool for a few minutes, then drain.
- To peel pearl onions, slice off a small bit of the root end then slip the skin off.
Finish creamed onions
- Add cornstarch and the same amount of water to a small bowl and stir until smooth (called a slurry).Add the cream or coconut milk to a medium pan (about 3 quarts) and bring to a boil. When milk is boiling, add the cornstarch slurry and whisk into the milk. It will start to thicken. Cook for 1 minute to get rid of any raw cornstarch taste. Turn heat to low and stir in ⅓ cup of water. Add the onions, salt, pepper, garlic, balsamic and thyme. Cover the pan and cook on low at a simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the pearl onions are tender when pierced with a sharp paring knife. Add nutmeg to serve and Parmesan (optional).
Mary Scaletta says
This sounds great! I'm on the ketogenic diet and want to make this without corn starch. Do you have any ideas for a substitute?
Sally Cameron says
Hi Mary, the substitute is arrowroot starch. Have you tried that?
Mary Michelsen says
Just made these for thanksgiving. I loved using coconut milk and the addition of the balsamic was great. They are delicious and I am sure will be even better reheated. I roasted frozen pearl onions to get some caramelization. I left out the parmesan in case there is anyone that is Vegan at the table.
Sally Cameron says
So glad to read your comment Mary. I am going to make mine tomorrow! Using fresh pearl onions, but the frozen ones are a great idea for readers. Happy Thanksgiving and thanks for sharing.
Debbie says
I am looking for vegan Thanksgiving dishes and creamed onions are a favorite this looks amazing! However, I am sorry to be a pain, but since you said it was your family silver, I am thought you actually made these onions with the recipe given. I don't see any white sauce, nor do I think the browned onion ends come from the boiling of the onions. It is a pet peeve of mine that the pictures used for recipes are not made following the recipe given or are stock photos. I am drawn to a recipe by the pictures. I consider myself a good cook, but I cannot achieve what you are capturing in the picture following the recipe given.... My 2 cents.
Sally Cameron says
Hi Debbie. I am confused by your comment but want to respond. I always create and cook my own recipes and shoot them myself for this blog. I never use stock photos for any of my recipes. Yes, that dish in the photo was my mother's or grandmother's and I am lucky to have it but it has nothing to do with the recipe. It's just the dish I chose to put them in. My recipe is gluten-free with a creamy sauce. The creaminess comes from the coconut milk, and yet it does not taste like coconut. If you've never used coconut milk this way, it is fantastic. Rich, creamy, vegan (leaving out the little bit of Parmesan), and gluten-free. No white sauce needed as in a traditional recipe. Please try making the recipe you will see it's easy and comes out just like the photo, just without my family silver dish. And if you want a little cheesy flavor but want to keep it vegan, try using nutritional yeast. I also have a recipe for a vegan cheesy sprinkle on my site. You could use that too. I am not sure what the problem is.
Ohmydish says
Hi ! Just wanted to let you know that we've added this recipe to our top 100 recipes for thanksgiving 2015! Check it out: http://ohmydish.com/100-best-thanksgiving-recipes-for-2015/ 🙂
Sally says
This is one of my all-time favorite standbys that my grandmother made, and I still make. I've cut out the cream and use the cooking water from the onions, but I still use butter and flour. I like this alternative way of making with coconut milk and cornstarch. Will have to try them this year. Great recipe!