The ultimate winter classic! French onion soup is one of those recipes that I only make once or twice a year. It’s rich and cheesy, but oh-so worth it. While it takes some time to prepare, it’s very easy, so I recommend putting on your favourite tunes and kicking back with a glass of wine. You won’t want to rush this one…
There’s only a few important tips for this recipe…
1. Don’t rush the onions! There’s so much dimension and flavour to onions when they’re done correctly, and if you take it ultra slow, you’ll unlock their potential. Cook them on the lowest heat possible, and leave them as long you can between stirs, without burning. They’ll take about 2 hours, and should be a deep brown hue and quite sweet by the end.
2. Go big or go home. In this case, I’m referring to the cheese. This is really what makes this dish so heavy, but it’s important you don’t hold back. If you don’t load up the cheese, you won’t get that beautiful, crusted, brown layered finish.
3. Homemade is worth the effort. I know I always say this, but it’s something I swear by! It sounds like a lot of work if you have to do it all in one day, but that’s the trick… get into the habit of having homemade stock already on-hand, so you can make use of it in recipes like this. It’s a rare occasion that I don’t have some stock in the freezer. And if you’re willing to go the extra mile, homemade bread is always a nice touch!
French Onion Soup
Ingredients
- 6 Large Yellow Onions, quartered lengthwise and sliced 1/4” thin
- 1/4 Cup Butter
- 1/4 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Cup Sherry
- 2 tsp Balsamic Reduction
- 1 Tbsp Chili Garlic Sauce, like Huy Fong Foods, Inc.
- 8 Cups Homemade Stock, (or quality store bought)
- 3-5 Sprigs of Thyme
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 2 tsp Salt
- 1 Baguette or Fresh Loaf of Bread, sliced 1/4”
- 1 1/2 – 2 Lbs Gruyere, shredded
Instructions
- Heat a large Dutch Oven over medium-high. Once hot, add the oil and the butter to the pot, and wait for the butter to foam. Then, add half the onions and begin to cook down, stirring frequently. Once the onions are slightly translucent, add the rest of them and continue to stir frequently. After about 10-15 minutes, the onions should be quite soft, but be very careful not to let them burn.
- Lower the heat as much as possible, spread the onions into an even layer across to bottom of the pot. Allow them to cook, untouched, for a few minutes before stirring again. As the pot comes down in temperature, this length of time will extend, and you should be able to leave to onions for reasonable stretches, allowing them to darken, but not burn.
- Continue to redistribute the onions evenly across the bottom of pot, allowing them to eventually cook down and darken to a deep brown hue. This process should take about 2 hours, depending on the temperature of your stove.
- NOTE: If you do not want to fish out the thyme sprigs and bay leaves once the soup is done, you can wrap them in cheesecloth and use kitchen twine to tie off the ends, like a candy wrapper.
- Once the onions are very soft, dark, and sweet, stir in the sherry and balsamic reduction and allow to cook for about 15 minutes, or until the wine has reduced significantly. Add the chili garlic sauce, broth, thyme sprigs, bay leaves, and salt, and allow to simmer for another 30-45 minutes.
- While the soup is finishing, turn your oven on broil. If you’re using a baguette, slice two pieces of bread per bowl of soup. If you’re using a whole loaf of your preferred bread, create half slices that will fit into each bowl. Rub each slice with olive oil and scatter them on a sheet pan. Place on the middle rack and allow to broil until golden and crisp. For extra crispy pieces, flip and repeat on the second side.
- TIP: For extra flavour, rub a clove of garlic over the crispy side of the bread, after broiling.
- Once the soup is done, season to taste. Place 4-6 French onion soup bowls on a sheet pan, and ladle the soup into each bowl, leaving about a half inch of space at the top. Carefully place the bread on top, so it floats and remains flat. Divide the cheese evenly and carefully build a small mountain over each piece of bread. You want to try to keep the cheese above the liquid, so it doesn’t get wet. It’s okay if the cheese melts over the sides of the bowl. French Onion Soup is meant to be this way.
- Place the sheet pan in the oven under the broiler and leave it until the cheese has browned and become crusty at the edges.
- Serve garnished with thyme, and enjoy!
This recipe is mouth watering. As good as any I’ve had…in fact likely better. The perfect combination of flavours and richness!