French Onion Soup
The BEST French Onion Soup recipe! Made with slowly caramelized yellow onions, a savory lightly herby broth, and each serving is finished with golden brown, rich cheese toasts. Talk about delicious!
Traditional French onion soup began as a humble peasant soup made with basic ingredients, and dates as far back as Roman times. It’s an onion and stock based soup served gratiné style with toasted bread or croutons and cheese atop.
It is one of those soups that you maybe didn’t appreciate as a child but have grown to really love an enjoy in all it’s cheesy flavorful glory as an adult.
While yes it is a rather easy soup to make and it doesn’t need very many ingredients, it does require a bit of time and tending to.
In other words patience is key. Have a little something to do nearby. Monitor the onions closely and you’ll have an excellent, deeply flavored bowl of soup to serve.
To ensure success be careful that you don’t burn and over-brown those onions or the frond (browned bits) on the surface of the pot (I’ve done this and it ruins the soup). Just monitor them as directed and deglaze the pot as directed.
And also don’t stop short of beautiful caramelized, this will take about 45 minutes, no shortcuts.
It’s all about slowly and gently caramelizing here. It’s a game changer.
As for the shade of the onions to watch for it’s all about a deep, richly golden brown color here (or even more so an auburn color) for the perfect soup.
Ingredients:
5 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into 1-Tbsp pieces
3 lbs yellow onions (preferably larger), peeled and thinly sliced
1/4 tsp salt, then more to taste
Water, as needed (up to about 1/2 cup)
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
3/4 cup dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc
4 cups beef stock
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 large sprig thyme
2 bay leaves (fresh or dried)
Cheese Toast
12 (3/4-inch slices) baguette (about 9 oz)
1 large garlic clove, halved
1 1/2 cups shredded gruyere cheese, or Swiss cheese
1/2 cup finely shredded parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp minced fresh parsley, optional