French Onion Soup

French Onion Soup always engenders contented smiles at my house. Onions browned to the point of caramelization, beef broth flavor turned up with dry sherry and red wine. Crusty bread croutons and Gruyere cheese!

Don’t be intimidated by a soup that takes a little longer to prepare. The slow-cooking time and the attention that it takes to caramelize the onions is worth every second. Stop short of getting that requisite dark brown fond and you’ll end up with just a bland onion soup. So set aside a couple of hours of cooking time for the onions to simmer. And yes, you will need to pay attention and stir them occasionally. But the reward is well worth your effort.

Some tips:

• If you can, use three different kinds of onions. The most preferred onion is a basic yellow onion. Sweet onions can tend to make the soup a bit too sweet; red onions go pale and lose a little of their vibrant flavor. White onions are mild overall, but still flavorful. My favorite combination is mostly yellow, with red and white added into the mix.
• Slice each onion from pole to pole; think of the stem and blossom ends as the two poles and cut the onion in half from pole to pole. Continue to slice each half from pole to pole, so you are cutting for long pieces, not circular pieces. Slicing this way bursts fewer cells in each layer of the onion, and helps maintain the slices’ structural integrity in the soup. Make each slice about ¼” thick.
• Fond is the brown residue that sticks to your pot when an ingredient such as meat (or in this case, onions) sticks to the pot in the process of cooking. Don’t waste the fond, it is the key to heightened flavor in almost every dish that produces it. Caramelizing onions, which browns the onions and produces fond, has some characteristics with browning roux for gumbo. You want the fond from the onions to darken to a deep, rich golden brown.
• NOTE: When caramelizing onions, remember that they need to have time to sit at the bottom of the pan in order to brown. Constant stirring is counterproductive. Be patient and watchful about stirring. But be careful to stop short of burning!
• When serving French Onion Soup you will need crostini (toasted Italian or French bread slices). The crostini soak up that delicious broth fairly quickly, so I advise against the temptation to substitute croutons, which tend to sink into the broth. Crostini will give your Gruyere cheese a base above the soup broth so it can bubble and brown.

French Onion Soup

French Onion Soup is satisfying and delicious!

Author: harriettscooking Cuisine: French

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Prep Time 20 mins Cook Time 2 hrs Total Time 2 hrs 20 mins Difficulty: Intermediate Servings: 8 Best Season: Suitable throughout the year

Ingredients

Servings

• 4 lb Onions (about 8 large onions)
• 2 oz Butter
• 2 tsp Salt
• 1 clove Garlic (finely minced)
• ¹⁄₂ tsp Ground Black Pepper
• 3 tsp Dried Thyme (or 6 fresh sprigs)
• 1 Bay Leaves
• ¹⁄₄ cup Dry Sherry
• ¹⁄₂ cup Red Wine
• 64 oz Beef Stock (2 boxes)

Instructions

1. Crostini

   Prepare Crostini: Slice a loaf of Italian or French bread into ½” thick slices. Place in a single layer on a sheet tray lined with parchment paper and bake in 350°F oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the pieces just begin to brown. Remove from oven and let cool. Set aside.

   

2. Slice onions by cutting pole to pole, making each slice about ¼” thick. Sprinkle evenly with salt.

3. Melt 2 T butter in the bottom of a 6 quart pot over medium heat, then add onions. Cover to let the onions cook and wilt for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent early sticking.

   

4. Once onions have wilted significantly, remove lid. Continue to cook, stirring at 10 to 15 minute intervals, being careful to keep the onions from burning. If onions are browning too quickly turn the heat down to low or medium low. As onions begin to brown, reduce intervals between stirring to 5 minutes or less.

5. Once onions have caramelized stir in the flour, then the remainder of the spices.

   

6. Add the wines and cook over medium heat until mixture thickens and bubbles.

7. Stir in the beef broth and heat through to a simmer. Adjust seasonings to taste.

   

8. To serve:

   1. 1. Preheat oven to broil at 525°F
      2. Ladle soup into oven-proof individual soup bowls.
      3. Place bowls on a sheet tray lined with foil.
      4. Top each bowl with a crostini slice and top generously with shredded Gruyere cheese.
      5. Broil soup bowls until cheese is hot and bubbly.
      6. Serve immediately.