Pickled Red Onions Are The Tangy Topping Your Nachos Deserve

Nachos are the perfect vessel to support your favorite toppings. The simple base of chips with cheese or a queso sauce take well to a wide variety of garnishes, ranging from fresh chopped cilantro (if you're not someone who hates it) to charred carne asada. One element you might not realize you're missing is something pickled. For some, pickled jalapeño is a key ingredient, but others aren't a fan of the spicy kick. Instead, you should try pickled red onions to provide a vinegary kick and a vibrant purple garnish. 

Pickled red onions work well on top of nachos because of the cheese component here. Nacho cheese is typically very thick, creamy, and velvety, and the tangy, vinegar flavor of the onions helps cut through this. If nachos support other dense toppings, like beans or grilled meats, the onions are a nice way to provide a pop of bright flavor. Plus, you typically don't see a bright pink-purple garnish on top of nachos, so this is a creative way to catch the eye. 

Although they make many dishes look fancier, this garnish is simply made from thinly sliced red onion that has been set in a jar with an easy brine of vinegar, salt, water, and typically a little bit of sweetener like honey, sugar, or agave. It's not very common to find this product in stores, but the ingredients are all kitchen staples, making it easier to whip up at home. 

Pickled red onions are affordable and easy to make, so you can go crazy with using them as a topping for your favorite dishes. If you've noticed, many restaurants will use them to top avocado toast and salads, making these simple dishes look a lot more elevated; you can also do this at home. They're great for anywhere you would find sliced raw onions — in sandwiches, burgers, and hot dogs. Any toast with savory toppings, like egg, cream cheese and salmon, or hummus, is waiting for the pickled red onion garnish.

Mexican cuisine is the perfect candidate for using pickled onions, as many dishes already use chopped onion as a topping; think tacos, soups, rice and beans, and tostadas. The tangy flavor also pairs nicely with creamy toppings found in Mexican cuisine, like queso fresco and crema. Like nachos, a Tex-Mex dish and many cheese-forward Mexican dishes could use a garnish of pickled onion, like chilaquiles, quesadillas, or enchiladas. 

Don't throw out the brine! The bright pink vinegar brine has an afterlife after all the onions have been eaten up. You can use it to do a second batch of onions, or even add in new vegetables, like thinly sliced carrot, pepper, or zucchini. Use the brine as the vinegar component in a salad dressing recipe, or even infuse it into nacho cheese, as you can do with the brine of pickled jalapeños.