French Onion Soup
I absolutely love French Onion Soup, as does my husband, Rob. Any time I see it on a menu it calls my name. I have had many beautiful soups over the years but have also tasted some duds. I then began trying different recipes I found online but was never fully satisfied like I was when I experienced the soup at a local french resteraunt SInce I met him, Rob would often tell a story of when he made it before we met. He recounted sweating down and caramelizing onions “all day” with the scent of onions permeated the house for days. He couldn’t remember exactly where he had gotten the recipe from, so I had searched high and low for one that took the amount of time he recollected.
Well, I was unsuccessful. It could be that his memory wasn’t entirely accurate and that is why I couldn’t find it, but I set my quest aside and started a new one. To create a lovely French Onion Soup that embodied what we both liked about it. I finally realized I should stop looking at actual recipes as it wasn’t getting me anywhere. Typically, if I am lacking in inspiration, I will look at other’s recipes as a jumping-off point, but in this case, it was a hindrance. I started to read about the soup’s origins and tips that came from various french chefs as well as American favorites, Jaques Pepin, and Julia Child.
In the end, I looked to the onion itself and the other basics and came up with a recipe that our family will enjoy for years to come.
Recipe Card
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French Onion Soup
Ingredients
Method
- Place a 5 quart or larger Dutch Oven on the Stovetop and heat to medium.
- Heat 2 Tablespoons of olive oil and place ¼ of the sliced onions in. Slowly cook the onions until a soft and deep caramel color has developed; about 8-10 minutes. Be sure to move the onions around in the pan periodically so they do not burn. This first batch of onions should be cooked to a darker brown than the subsequent batches. Remove the Onions from the dutch oven and set aside
- Add 1 more tablespoon of the olive oil as well as the next ¼ of onions. Cook them in the same manner as part one, but you want to cook until a light caramel color, about 5-6 minutes. Remove and set aside with the first batch.
- Repeat with the final 2 batches of onions.
- After all of the onions are cooked and removed from the Dutch Oven, turn the burner to medium-high. When heated add the red wine to de-glaze the pan. Use a wooden spoon and gently scrape the bottom and sides of the pan to assist in getting all the bits up from the onions. Cook until the wine has reduced, about 3 minutes.
- Add the onions back into the dutch oven and toss to combine with the reduced wine, making sure to mix the onions thoroughly to combine the batches. Cook for 2 minutes and then lower the temperature to low heat.
- Add 32 ounces of the beef stock and cover the Dutch Oven and simmer on low heat for 45 minutes.
- Add the butter, the remaining 16 ounces of beef stock, and the fresh thyme.
- Cover and continue to simmer on low for another 15-20 minutes. Taste the broth and then season with salt and pepper to taste.
- You can serve as is or ladle into an oven-safe crock and cover with a toasted piece of bread and ample Gruyere Cheese and place under a broiler to melt cheese and brown to the desired amount.
Notes:
* I suggest using the full 3lbs of onions. What does this mean? It means you buy more than 3lbs as you'll have some waste peeling and discarding the ends of each onion.
I like ample broth in my soup, especially if you use a crouton, it soaks much of it up. If you prefer less, you can use 32 ounces total.