Cheesy Baked Onion Dip

My 4-ingredient baked onion dip recipe, with flavorful bites of sweet Vidalia onion, takes cheesy to a whole new level.

Oh, how I love this baked onion dip recipe. It’s ooey, gooey, and so good, y’all. It’s guaranteed to get stomachs growling and tongues wagging at your game day party or holiday celebration.

I first had this at a football party a decade or so ago. The hostess had just taken it out of the oven and it was just bubbling so nicely on top of a folded-up dishtowel. I asked her what it was and she immediately started telling me the recipe. I dipped a corn chip into it and decided to keep that bubbly dish company for a little while.

There are all sorts of recipes with all sorts of ingredients out there for this amazingly delicious baked onion dip. But I just streamlined and put together what was needed to make it. In a world that strives to make everything 10 times more complicated than it needs to be, I prefer to simplify things whenever possible.

Here is my recipe for cheesy baked Vidalia dip and all of its 4-ingredient glory. Yep, all you need is sweet Vidalia onion, cream cheese, mayo, and shredded cheese to make the cheesiest and creamiest dip imaginable. It’s also super easy to make, with just a little mixing and a little baking before it’s time to eat it up!

If you’re gonna watch a game this weekend or just want something that’s gonna warm your belly, this will do the trick.

Recipe Ingredients

• Mayo
• Mozzarella cheese
• Cheddar cheese
• Cream cheese (click here for our homemade cream cheese recipe)
• Sweet onion

 How to Make Baked Onion Dip

 You only need half of that brick of cream cheese so cut half of it up into little cubes and put it into a large bowl. 

Place this in the microwave for 30-45 seconds just to soften it. 

Chop up your onions until you’re tired of chopping up onions.

The ideal here would most likely be finely diced onion, but can you really see me sticking with it that long? You can use one of those little mini chopper things for this if you want.

This is my cream cheese after 45 seconds in the microwave.

I went to touch it lightly with my finger to see if it was soft and poked a big old hole in it! Sure was soft!

Toss your onions on top of your cream cheese.

Toss your cheese on top of that.

Put some mayo on top of all of that…

And stir it all up pretty good.

Spray a baking dish with cooking spray.

This is a 1.5-quart baking dish. You can use an 8×8 dish or anything in the general vicinity of that size and it’ll be just fine.

Spoon it all into the prepared dish and bake at 375 for 25 to 30 minutes.

Oh, have mercy! It will look like this.

Lean into your computer and see if you can smell that. Uh-huh, you know what I am talking about.

And I know you can hear it bubbling… so my goodness you are just gonna have to make this yourself.

You can serve this with corn chips (I use the scoops kind) or crackers or what the heck, just use a spoon. 

Storage

Store leftover dip in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat quickly in the microwave, oven, or air fryer to get that crispy top again. 

Recipe Notes

• I use 1.5 cups of mild cheddar cheese and 1.5 cups of mozzarella cheese, but you can use all cheddar if you like. You might also like to use a combo that includes Swiss cheese or parmesan cheese.
• Add a cup of spinach and/or artichoke to make a mix between onion dip and spinach and artichoke dip.
• For a little heat, add a 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper or 1/2 teaspoon of hot pepper sauce.
• For something different, serve your baked onion dip in a toasted bread bowl.
• If you want to add some extra flavor, add 2 teaspoons of fresh minced garlic or garlic powder. 

Recipe FAQs

Do I have to use Vidalia onions?

Ideally, Vidalia onions are my go-to. However, they don’t come into season until late spring so just get a white onion and you’ll be just fine. Or if you have a yellow onion, saute it a little bit before adding it to the dish. This will make it more of a caramelized onion dip. 

Should I use pre-shredded or block cheese?

 Okay, I know the pre-shredded stuff is handy to have and I’m a HUGE fan of it. BUT for this recipe to be its ooiest and gooiest, you gotta get a block of cheese and shred it yourself at home. They coat pre-shredded cheese in anti-caking agents to prevent it from clumping and that prevents it from melting together completely when you bake it as well. HOWEVER, if you just really don’t want to shred your cheese for this or if you already have pre-shredded on hand and don’t want to spend extra money, go ahead and use it and it’ll be just fine.

Can I make my onion dip ahead of time?

Yes, you can prepare the dip and store the covered baking dish in the fridge up to 2 days in advance. Let it come to room temperature before baking as instructed.

What do you serve with baked onion dip?

You can serve the baked dip with crackers, corn chips, pretzels, crusty bread pieces, tortilla chips, pita chips, or pita bread. Another option is vegetable sticks, like carrot sticks, celery sticks, or zucchini sticks.

You may also enjoy these delicious dip recipes:

Cheeseburger Dip

Pumpkin Fritters with Orange Marmalade Dipping Sauce

Pimiento Cheese Dip

Grandmama’s Tex Mex Dip

Reuben Dip

Easy Buffalo Chicken Dip