Hello there ..
I normally crush the onions either into a fine paste or into a coarse blend before starting to bhunoo it while preparing salan .
I want to try it without blending this time , but want the onions to mix in extremely well into the salan. Any techniques that will help me achieve perfect blended onion masala in the salan?
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
ooo I already started a thread on this once a while ago but I never got the answers I was looking for and my salans are still never smooth without the use of a blender (I always wonder how desis living in pinds manage to make lovely salans with a lack of electricity???) so I would love to read some fresh answers!
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
My mother in law does not at all use blender and it was my main conflict with her in cooking. However what she does was she used to just fry onion in pressure cook till golden brown and without putting any masala she use to give it a go in pressure cooker for 5-7 minutes and then after that use to put masala and it was all a good paste. She even use to make shorbas like this. Very seldom there was may be once in amonth a day when there would be onion floating in the Salan otherwise it was all paste. Even in dawats she never blended. Then the key is also that you bhooning it good with whatever meat or veggies you putting in. I usually use blended or chopped but sometimes i tried this method also and found it very successful however im lazy in cutting onions so i prefer just a little pulse in the chopper so its not paste but chopped
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
My go-to technique is sliced onion till medium brown then given pressure in the cooker for 4-5 mins.
The other method I use to make chicken qorma is a hand chopper and cut onions how you would do it for an omelette.
My dad also uses it to chop vegetables for chapli kebabs. I find it much faster and does its job but find that my eyes tend to water more with this way and my kids also get very agitated too?
So normally I prepare the masala night before when my kids are sleeping 
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
Doing it manually takes a lot of time but results are beautiful. After browning them in oil a bit, add water, lower heat, cover it up and let it simmer - add garlic and ginger too. Takes a while longer but they will mesh and paste is beautiful. When water starts drying, start stirring until texture is consistent.
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
Hmm, last evening I tried this technique. As the water dried up slightly the onions continued cooking to a dark brown color , so I kept on adding a bit more water every couple minutes ( like every8-10 minutes) ..
we use white onion for salan coz we get that handy here .. does that make a difference? despite cooking the onion for a good half hour , it still didnt mesh completely 
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
this is how I do it too. Turns out great
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
Pressure cooker method is best for gallofying them
Otherwise in a regular pot, you will have to add some water & cover them to dissolve
In my experience, blending gives the most consistent results & is faster
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
I made chicken shorbay wala salan recently and correctly for the first time. And did exactly what scherbatsky says - cut up/chop onions on the thinner side, fry them till edges start turning golden (I don’t brown) and then add a whole cup of water, cover and simmer for 5 minutes or so. Then take the lid off, turn up the heat, and dry the water, and add GG paste, and tomatoes, and whatever else you have to add. Maybe next time don’t brown the onion, and keep them golden and then try this method.
It was perfect shorba, no onions were showing separately.
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
Ok , I will try it again , this time will just wait for onions to turn slightly translucent and then will add water and simmer.
Thanks again everyone for all the wonderful help :)))
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
I do my salans differently: Fry the sliced onion first on high. As soon as it reaches that edges turning brown stage, I lower heat and turn frequently. Meanwhile, in a blender, I add garlic, ginger, tomatoes and all the spices, then drain the onions when they are at that perfect golden color, add the onions to the blender, and make a smoothie type thingie. Add it all back into the same oil along with whole spices if needed, lower flame and let it cook covered until the oil separates. At that point I add the meat/chicken, bhuno a bit, then add the veggies and/or water.
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
bhunfoy salan using blender to paste the onions taste way differnet than doing scherbatsy way and thats how i do it too. i like the long way
Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
Interesting, we never use a blender for the onions. I don’t remember seeing onions in our salans either but then again I’m not picky about onions showing so maybe I don’t pay attention.
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
^^ Yes. I use the longer way when I’m doing some special dish. For everyday salans, I call upon my blender lol!
I agree…we’ve never used a blender in our family…and lol i’ve never noticed the onions either.
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
Thank you ladies!!! I was beginning to think I was the only and have been doing it wrong lol!!! I’ve never even heard of using a blender until I started using this forum, I thought maybe it was just a Hyderabadi thing and that we cook differently 
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
We’ve never used a blender either and our onions rarely show.
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
My mother doesnt blend her onions, and I hate onions, but I never noticed any in her salans. However, when I cook by her no-blend method in my own kitchen, I always have onions and I can’t stand it. That’s why I started blending. Maybe it depends on the pot & stove.
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
Secret is to slice the onions really thin, if you have thick peices, they will never “desolve?”
So steps
its always worked for me this way.
If you see your onions are a bit on the hard side, and u feel they wont desolve, add alittle water once like 3 minutes goes by while frying, and cover on top. remember to pick up the top and stir every few minutes. The steam + oil will help soften the onions faster. Let me know if this helped!
Re: Best way to bhunoo the onions for masala
This is how I was taught by my nani ^
I’ve seen my mom do the exact same thing…so we do both ways but I like the longer way better I think. Adat se majboor hoon 