Caramelized shallot tart tatin – My Parisian Kitchen

Revisit French cuisine with this salty tarte Tatin with caramelized shallots. Soft, crispy, easy to make, perfect as a starter or light dish.

This shallot tart Tatin is one of the most beautiful ways to revisit a great classic of French cuisine. Under a crispy crust hide caramelized shallots, meltingly tender. And when you turn it over, the magic happens. A savory tart is generous, elegant, perfect as a starter or light dish, and much easier to make than it seems.

When we talk about tarte Tatin, we immediately think of a very comforting fall or winter dessert, with soft caramelized apples, served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or crème fraîche.
Well, imagine feeling that same sensation: melting and caramelized, but in a salty version. That’s what I’m offering you today with this version of salty shallot tart Tatin.

Ingredients and variations

Shallots

Unlike some recipes you can find on the internet or in cookbooks, I suggest a good quantity of shallots because I find that the garnish must be quite generous, otherwise you risk ending up with an unbalanced tart, with a thin layer of shallots on the dough.
The disadvantage of this is that it is then more complex to have pretty shallots neatly arranged next to each other, it is less aesthetic, less Instagrammable, but trust me, after several dozen preparations of this recipe, it is much better.
So I’ll let you do as you wish, less prettily arranged shallots or more indulgence.

Choose shallots of uniform sizethey will cook evenly. Keep them whole if they are not too big, so they will hold up better when cooking, or cut them in half lengthwise.

If you want to have a nice visual, remember that, as this is a Tatin which will be turned over when it comes out of the oven, you must put your shallots in the opposite direction to that which you want to see once unmolded (rounded side against the dish and cut side facing you if you want a visual showing the exterior side of the shallots, and vice versa.).

Onion variation

You can decline this recipe from Tarte Tatin with onions (ideally Roscoff onions or red onions) or even new spring onions, it’s quite nice. The recipe is exactly the same, you just have to replace the shallots with onions.

The pie dough

For the pie crust, opt for a shortcrust pastry or puff pastryit’s really a question of taste. I prefer shortcrust pastry which holds together better when you cut the pieces.

The mold

On the hardware side, the ideal is to have a Tatin tart mold (I was given one!) which is like a cake dish but which goes on the hob, or a pan which can go in the oven (so not with a plastic handle, we understand!). This allows the shallots to be roasted and caramelized in the same container as the one that goes in the oven, once the shallots are covered with the pie crust.

But it’s completely optional. If you don’t have any, once the shallots are prepared, transfer them to a pie or cake dish, ideally covered with baking paper. Parchment paper makes it really easy to unmold your tarte Tatin.

How to get well caramelized shallots

When you melt shallots with olive oil or butter over low heat, you trigger two distinct phenomena. First, the water contained in the shallots evaporates: they soften and become translucent. Then, if the heat rises slowly and if we add a little sugar or balsamic vinegar, the natural sugars of the shallots begin to transform, this is caramelization. The result is a melting, almost candied texture.

Classic mistake to avoid: too much heat at the start. The shallot should melt, not fry. I therefore suggest that you gently brown the shallots with olive oil or butter. Then add a combo of balsamic vinegar and brown sugar. You can replace the brown sugar with soy sauce, it works very well.

Service and garnish

Let the tart rest for 5 minutes out of the oven before turning it over : the caramel will then have time to set slightly, unmolding will be clearer.

Serve the shallot tatin while still warm, by sprinkling over a creamy burrata, crumbled feta or even fresh goat cheese.

Add some crushed oilseeds : walnuts, roasted hazelnuts, pine nuts or even cashews for a little crunch.

Serve with a green salad or raw vegetableslike cucumbers with cream or leeks with vinaigrette, and you will have a perfect light meal.

The detailed recipe awaits you right after. I will explain the instructions and cooking times to you step by step.