The Misconception About Onions In Italian Cuisine, According To The Pasta Queen

Nadia Caterina Munno has taken the pasta-loving world by storm. If you don't know her, you should. She is TikTok's Pasta Queen and her flair for all things Italian gives her real cred when it comes to cooking. Prime Video has even given Munno her own show, and she is taking the opportunity to educate and share her five generations of knowledge while clearing up some misconceptions about how Italians use and cook with various ingredients, including onions. 

While you may think of long-developed flavors in Italian cooking, onions are an exception. In episode 7 of her "The Pasta Queen" series where she makes up her Nonna-approved eggplant Parmigiana and its classic tomato-based sauce, Munno revealed that in Italian cooking, "We do not burn or brown the onions." She further explained, "No, when it's golden brown, it's gone! That's not how Nonna taught us."

So how do you cook onions when making an Italian dish? Different types of onions can be used differently. The Pasta Queen uses a white onion for her sauce and says you want the finely diced pieces to become soft and translucent which only takes three to four minutes. This allows this root vegetable to become aromatic without overdeveloping its flavor to the point it is caramelized. It also ensures the texture doesn't become too soft or worse, mushy. What's wrong with caramelized onions? Absolutely nothing, but they have a time and a place — and it generally isn't in Italian cooking. 

When the Pasta Queen uses onion in her sauces, she notes that the onion skin (the layer of the onion that is a little dry) should be peeled and saved for soup — the same trick works for garlic peels, too. When making the sauce itself, she said, "I try to use that fragrant, young, fresh onion that really releases a lot of flavor." If you are ever in doubt about how many onions you need for a recipe, she notes during the show that half of a medium onion is equivalent to a half cup of diced onion. If you're worried about only using half, don't be. As long as you've only peeled it and cut it on the halving side (not diced, minced, or julienned), your half of an onion should be good for up to two weeks. Just trim away the exposed edge before using.

The cookbook author also drops a flavor bomb about what ingredient goes into what. She forcefully instructs viewers, "And don't put the onions after the tomato. They have to release those juices before the tomato goes in." Munno also doesn't salt her onions and garlic as it sautés. Instead, she waits until after she adds the tomato to the onions to season it with that sprinkle of sodium and scrunch of pepper.