Why do onions taste sweet when cooked, particularly when cooked for very long periods?
-Oli
The naturally ocurring sugar gets caramalised by heat and the sweet flavour is magnified by the loss of water.
Chemistry.
Onions contain starch, and starch is basically a long chain of sugar molecules stuck together. Heating causes these chains to break, releasing the individual sugar molecules. The more cooking, the more sugar that’s released.
I like them raw
Because:
-The pungent volatile compounds have been broken down or driven off by the heat.
-The cells have broken open and released their contents.
-The water content is reduced, concentrating the flavours.
-The sugars may have partially caramelised, making them more intense in flavour.
Also, the pungent flavor of onion develops after it is cut or chewed due to the action of the enzyme alliinase. The heat of cooking probably deactivates this enzyme.
I love sauteed onions. Yum.
I like them raw too (Vidalia are my favorite ones).
They are FULL of sugar compared to many other vegetables. A total nightmare for the Atkins diet, you have to be really careful how much you eat.
Interestingly, after a couple of weeks of strict Atkins Induction (the first stage of the diet) I ate a pretty much raw onion - hard and crunchy. It tasted so sweet to my now sugar-un-desensitised tastebuds it was almost unpleasant.