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French onion soup is literally one of my all-time favorite soup recipes. It amazes me how such simple ingredients can come together to create a robust dish full of flavor. For those of you who have never made french onion soup before, do not be intimidated by this recipe. Trust your taste buds and use the ingredients I’ve listed below as a guide. You will notice I did not specify how much salt to add to the dish. This is because everyone’s preference is different, and the amount of salt needed depends on the type of onions you use and the flavors of your stock.
This is also a dish that takes time. There are no shortcuts to a good french onion soup. The longest part of this recipe is not only chopping the onions, but allowing them time to sweat down and caramelize. Some people will add sugar to the onions to speed up the caramelization process, but I prefer to not add any additional sweetness and to just allow the onions to brown slowly on their own.
One preference I have when cutting onions for this dish is to actually cut the onion in half, root to root, peel the exterior shell off of the onion, and then cut the onion into half moon shapes towards the root. Keeping the root on while cutting will keep the onion in tack, making it easier to cut.
French onion soup is also famous because of the aromatic flavors derived from the alcohol or spirits that are added to the broth. Some recipes will call for white wine, red wine, or vermouth, but I actually prefer the taste of dry Sherry to all of these selections. Any of the above mentioned enhancements will work, however, just be sure the wine is dry and not sweet. The cognac in this recipe is also optional, but I find that it adds an extra flavor to the soup as inspired by Julia Child. My favorite cognac to use in this recipe is Hennessy Black. It has light notes of citrus which actually brighten the soup’s flavor after simmering.
With regards to the dishes used to serve the soup in, I ordered my soup bowls from here on Amazon. However, any oven safe dish will work, such as a ramekins, or even porcelain coffee mugs. I hope you enjoy the recipe below! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
French Onion Soup
Ingredients
- 4 Onions Sliced
- 2 tbsp Butter
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 6 cups Chicken Broth
- 1 tsp Better than Bouillon (Beef Flavor)
- 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 2 tbsp All Purpose Flour
- 1/2 cup Dry Sherry Wine
- 2 tbsp Cognac (Optional)
- 4 oz Gruyère Cheese Shredded
- 6 slices Provolone Cheese
- 1 Bouquet Garni (Parsley, Thyme, Celery, 1 Bay Leaf)
- 1 Baguette Sliced and Toasted
- Salt & Pepper to Taste
Instructions
- Take 4 onions and thinly slice these to speed up cooking time. The type of onions do not matter, but I recommend yellow onions or have fun and try a variety of onions. Melt butter and olive oil together in a large pot over medium heat. Add sliced onions to butter and olive oil mixture. Add salt to extract the juices from the onions.
- Continue to slowly cook onions until they are soft and caramelize. They should appear to be a brown color. Depending on the type of pot you use, this process can take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour. Be sure to periodically stir your onions so they do not burn at the bottom of the pot.
- As the onions are cooking, begin to prepare the broth. In a separate pot, add chicken broth, Better than Bouillon (Beef Flavor), Worcestershire Sauce, and a Bouquet Garni. A Bouquet Garni is a fancy French cooking term that basically means tie a few herbs together in preparation for a cooking stock or soup. In this recipe, I tied the following fresh ingredients together: Parsley, Thyme, Celery, and 1 Bay Leaf. Simmer ingredients together for around 30 minutes.
- Once onions have caramelized, add flour and stir this for about 1 minute or 2 to get rid of the flour taste. Next stir in dry Sherry wine and use your spoon to remove the brown bits from the bottom of the pot. During this time, your wine will begin to evaporate, and the brown bits at the bottom of the pot will enhance the overall flavor. This process may take around 5 minutes.
- Next, remove the Bouquet Garni from the broth, and pour the soup broth over the onion mixture. Stir and bring mixture to a simmer. Allow ingredients to cook for at least 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, reduce heat, and taste the soup mixture. Add salt, pepper, and 2-3 tbsp of cognac until the desired taste is achieved.
- To prepare for serving, turn on your oven broiler. Take an oven safe dish, and add toasted baguette bits to the bottom, add a layer of shredded cheese and ladle in the french onion soup to the top of the serving dish. On top of the soup, add one more layer of toasted bread, and top with gruyère and provolone cheese. Bake inside of your oven near the broiler for a few minutes until cheese browns and bubbles. Remove from oven and serve hot. Enjoy!
Such a classic but one that always delivers. That looks so warming and perfect for November.
French onion soup is such a great dish when the weather gets cold. It has a great flavor, and it’s really warming. This looks really good.
This looks absolutely amazing! It is so yummy to dip sandwiches in it, and add cheese.
This french onion soup recipe brought tears to my eyes. This was my late Nana’s all time favorite soup. I have to make it in her memory.
This soup looks so amazing and with that cheese on top it looks even more mouth watering. I would love to try this soup out!
It looks heavy, but it isn’t! A delicious recipe of French cuisine that has captured my heart!
Wow and wow and wow, this onion soup recipe of yours looks really amazing and I am pretty excited to try this for my family.
I did this soup. Added French Baghette with melted cheese. Such a divine delicacy. Whole family loved it!
I adore French Onion Soup! This looks delicious and so perfect for the winter months
I love the French Onion Soup Recipe! It’s so easy to do. Can’t wait to try cooking it at home.
Hhhhmmmm….tastes nice already. Besides, I have all the ingredients I need to achieve this, with me.
The soup looks delicious… Winter season has already started. I have bookmarked the link. Will give this recipe a try on the weekend. Super excited!
Wow how amazing does this look. I love how you have used all different types of onion too. Looking forward to making this x
Winter is here and this is definitely perfect for hosting dinners! I am hosting a lot of Christmas parties these days for different groups of friends and will definitely try this!