Best The Best French Onion Soup Recipes

FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• In a large Dutch oven or soup pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the oil, onions, salt, pepper, and sugar. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until onions are deep golden brown and caramelized, 45 to 55 minutes. In the beginning, you will only need to stir the onions only occasionally. As they start to brown midway through cooking, you will need to stir them frequently, scraping the fond (the brown particles) from the bottom of the pan. If the onions are browning too quickly, reduce the heat slightly or add a few tablespoons of water to deglaze the pan and continue cooking.
• Add the wine and raise the heat to high. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape any fond from the bottom of the pan, until almost all of the liquid has evaporated and the onions are jammy, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for one minute.
• Add the broth, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, and bay leaves to the pot. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook, covered, for about 30 minutes.
• While the soup simmers, preheat the oven to 400°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Arrange the baguette slices in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake until the bread is dry, crisp, and golden at edges, about 10 minutes. Set aside.
• When the soup is finished, remove the bay leaves and add the sherry; taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. If the soup needs a deeper flavor, try a few shakes of Worcestershire sauce. If it's not quite sweet enough, add ¼ teaspoon sugar.
• Adjust an oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Set individual broiler-safe crocks on a baking sheet and divide the hot soup among the crocks (be sure the soup is very hot as it won't warm up much in the oven). Top each crock with 1 or 2 baguette slices (do not overlap slices) and sprinkle evenly with Gruyère and then Parmigianno Reggiano. Slide the crocks into the oven and broil until the cheese is melted and bubbly around edges, 3 to 5 minutes. Let the crocks cool for a few minutes before serving. (Alternatively, if using regular soup bowls: Top each toast slice with some cheese and return to broiler to melt, about 2 minutes more. Divide the soup among bowls and top each serving with two cheese toasts.)
• Make-Ahead Instructions: The soup can be made and refrigerated up to 3 days ahead (without toasts or cheese), or up to 3 months ahead and frozen. Toasts can be made (without the cheese) and kept sealed at room temperature for up to 3 days.

FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• Melt butter in a heavy Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions and 1/2 teaspoon salt, stir and cover, letting onions soften for 5 minutes. Remove lid and let onions caramelize until golden brown over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Adjust heat if onions are browning too quickly. The caramelization process may take 45 to 60 minutes.
• Meanwhile, warm broth in a saucepan over low heat.
• Once onions are caramelized, add wine and sherry to the pot and allow mixture to come to boil. Stir in flour and let thicken for a minute or two.
• Slowly add warm broth, 1/4 teaspoon salt and the pepper to the onion mixture and boil uncovered for 10 minutes. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
• Heat the broiler, and arrange individual ovenproof casseroles on a baking sheet. Ladle soup into casseroles, and cover top with bread slices. Sprinkle each casserole generously with Gruyère. Broil for a minute or two, watching carefully, until cheese melts and browns. Serve immediately.

THE BEST FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a very large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat. Add the onions, bay leaves, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and a few grinds black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are very soft and light golden-brown, about 1 hour. (The onions will begin to stick to the bottom of the pan and turn brown after about 30 minutes; just keep scraping them up and stirring them into the rest of the onions. If they are browning to quickly, lower the heat.)
• Add the wine to the pot, bring to a simmer and cook until it has almost completely evaporated, about 4 minutes. Add the beef broth and 1 cup of water, bring to a simmer and cook until the flavors come together and the soup is rich, about 45 minutes. Remove the bay leaves. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Keep the soup warm on a low burner or cool completely and refrigerate to reheat later. (The soup can be refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 1 month.)
• Preheat the broiler. Place four soup crocks on a rimmed baking sheet and fill them about 3/4 of the way with hot soup. Float a slice of baguette on top of each and cover with 1/2 cup Gruyere. Broil until the Gruyere is golden brown (don't be alarmed if some soup bubbles out), 2 to 3 minutes.

CLASSIC FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons oil and butter over medium heat. Add onions; cook and stir until softened, 10-13 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook, stirring occasionally, until deep golden brown, 30-40 minutes. Add minced garlic; cook 2 minutes longer., Stir in wine. Bring to a boil; cook until liquid is reduced by half. Add broth, pepper and salt; return to a boil. Reduce heat. Simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour. , Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400°. Place baguette slices on a baking sheet; brush both sides with remaining 3 tablespoons oil. Bake until toasted, 3-5 minutes on each side. Rub toasts with halved garlic. , To serve, place twelve 8-oz. broiler-safe bowls or ramekins on baking sheets; place 2 toasts in each. Ladle with soup; top with cheese. Broil 4 in. from heat until cheese is melted.

OUR FAVORITE FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• In a large Dutch oven or other large pot, melt 3 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add the oil and onions; cook onions are until softened, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Add the salt, pepper, and sugar; continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are deep golden brown and caramelized, reducing heat slightly if onions seem to be browning too quickly, 35 to 45 minutes more.
• Add wine and raise heat to high. Cook until almost all liquid has evaporated, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Tie thyme and bay leaves into a bundle with twine. Add broth and herb bundle to pot with onions. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, until broth is thickened and flavorful, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Taste and adjust seasoning.
• Heat the broiler. Cut two 1/2-inch baguette slices for every serving of soup. Place baguette slices on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in oven until crisp and dry but not browned, about 1 minute per side. Rub one side of each toast with the garlic clove and set aside.
• Place ramekins or ovensafe bowls on a rimmed baking sheet, add 1/2 teaspoon of sherry to the bottom of each, and ladle soup on top. Top each serving of soup with two garlic-rubbed toasts. Divide cheese among the servings, covering the bread and some of the soup. Carefully transfer baking sheet to oven and broil until cheese is melted and bubbling, 4 to 8 minutes. (Alternatively, if using regular soup bowls: Top each garlic-rubbed toast with some cheese and return to broiler to melt, about 2 minutes more. Divide sherry and soup among bowls, sprinkle with remaining cheese, and top each serving with two cheese toasts.)

RICH AND SIMPLE FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• Melt butter with olive oil in an 8 quart stock pot on medium heat. Add onions and continually stir until tender and translucent. Do not brown the onions.
• Add beef broth, sherry and thyme. Season with salt and pepper, and simmer for 30 minutes.
• Heat the oven broiler.
• Ladle soup into oven safe serving bowls and place one slice of bread on top of each (bread may be broken into pieces if you prefer). Layer each slice of bread with a slice of provolone, 1/2 slice diced Swiss and 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese. Place bowls on cookie sheet and broil in the preheated oven until cheese bubbles and browns slightly.