How To Make the Best French Onion Soup
There are two essential components of a good French onion soup. The first is the stock. Your soup will only be as good as the stock you are using. This soup traditionally is made with beef stock, though sometimes a good beef stock can be hard to come by and expensive to make. If you use boxed stock, taste it first! If you don’t like the taste, don’t use it. (If you cook a lot of beef or beef roasts, save the scraps and freeze them to make a stock with later.)
The Secret Ingredient Is Time
The second most important element is to properly caramelize the onions. Caramelizing the amount of onions needed in this recipe will take at least 40 minutes. Caramelizing is a chemical process that occurs when the sugars in the onions reach a certain temperature. This only happens after a long cooking time (the addition of a little extra sugar will help). The more caramelized, the deeper the color of the onions and the more flavor you’ll get from them. Others mentioned adding some Worcestershire sauce at the end to give it an additional depth of flavor. If you omit the alcohol, you may want to add a tablespoon or so of Worcestershire, but it’s not necessary. If you do choose to omit the alcohol, use a half cup of the beef broth to deglaze the pan as instructed in Step 2 before adding the remaining stock in Step 3.
The Best Cheese To Use for French Onion Soup
Gruyere and Parmesan are the classics for French onion soup. However, if you don’t have them, try these alternatives.
GoudaSwissFontinaMozzarella
How To Store and Reheat This Dish
Store the soup—without the croutons—in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. To reheat, bring to a boil on the stovetop. The croutons are best when made fresh.
How To Freeze French Onion Soup
This soup—without the croutons—freezes well. Freeze the cooled soup up to 3 months. Defrost in the refrigerator and reheat by boiling on the stovetop. Make the croutons fresh.
More Warm and Cozy Soup Recipes to Try!
Butternut Squash Apple Soup Instant Pot French Onion Soup Roasted Kabocha Squash Soup Smoky Vegan Lentil Stew Farro, Mushroom, and Spinach Soup
Cook the onions, stirring often, until they have softened, about 15 to 20 minutes. Increase the heat to medium high. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and the butter and cook, stirring often, until the onions start to brown, about 20 to 40 minutes. The amount of time will vary depending on your pot, stove, and onions. Add the minced garlic and cook for a minute more. Brush both sides of the French bread or baguette slices lightly with olive oil (you’ll end up using about a tablespoon and a half of olive oil for this). Put in the oven and toast until lightly browned, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from oven. Turn the toasts over and sprinkle with the grated Gruyere cheese and Parmesan. Return to oven when it’s close to serving time and bake until the cheese is bubbly and lightly browned. Alternatively, you can use individual oven-proof bowls or one large casserole dish. Ladle the soup into the bowls or casserole dish. Cover with the toast and sprinkle with cheese. Put into the broiler for 10 minutes at 350° F, or until the cheese bubbles and is slightly browned.
