Easy French Onion Soup Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What broth is French onion soup made of? ›

What Is French Onion Soup? French onion soup, or soupe à l'oignon gratinée, is a classic French dish made with caramelized onions and beef stock or broth. The soup is topped with bread and cheese, then gratinéed to rich, gooey perfection.

Fresh thyme: always go with fresh thyme sprigs over dried. Worcestershire sauce: the flavors in Worcestershire sauce are a mix of vinegar, garlic, chile, molasses, etc. which act as the French onion soup spices. A tablespoon goes a long way to help bring out the umami flavors.

What is the Difference Between Onion Soup and French Onion Soup? French onion soup is always made with beef stock. Other onion soups can be made with chicken, vegetable, or beef stock. Additionally, French onion soup typically contains wine or sherry, which isn't typical or necessary in other onion soups.

Other Swiss types of cheese like Raclette cheese or Appenzeller Cheese or Dutch cheeses like Edam cheese or Gouda or Jarlsberg cheese from Norway or American Swiss cheese can all be substituted.

If you can't get good quality beef broth, use chicken or vegetable instead. I find that the quality of those by mainstream brands is much better than the beef stock. The beef is fine to use in things like gravy and stews, but not when it's a key ingredient like in this recipe.

French onion soup is the ultimate comfort food. Onions get slowly cooked until sweet and caramelized, then simmered in rich broth until they're practically falling apart. To finish it off, toasted bread is added to give it that lovable crisp-gone-soggy texture and a generous amount of Gruyère cheese is melted on top.

The caramelized onions for this soup cook more quickly due to a pinch of baking soda but still have that deep, slow-cooked flavor. Topping the soup with hot, cheesy toasts prepared while the soup simmers, eliminates the need to bake the soup in specialty French onion soup bowls.

Made slightly thicker than most watered down soups because every mouthful NEEDS a slightly thickened texture to compliment the caramelized onions.

Lack of seasoning: Seasoning is crucial in any dish, and French onion soup is no exception. If you don't add enough salt, pepper, or other herbs and spices, the soup may taste bland. Weak broth: The quality and intensity of the beef broth used in the soup can greatly impact its flavor.

First, French onion soup calls for a ton of onions. While onions aren't expensive, there's a lot of labor involved in halving, peeling, and slicing 10, 12, 50, or one billion onions (I don't know how much soup you make).

How do I thicken French onion soup? ›

The easiest way to thicken your French onion soup is with flour. You can also use cornstarch if you don't have any flour. Remember to never add the flour or cornstarch directly to the soup – otherwise you run the risk of it clumping.

For French onion soup, it is best to slice the onions into thin, even slices. This will allow them to cook evenly and caramelize properly. You can achieve this by cutting the onion in half, placing the flat side down, and slicing it widthwise into thin slices.

Basic grocery store Swiss cheese is another potential substitute. Technically, a knockoff of Alpine Emmentaler, American Swiss is made with pasteurized cow's milk and has smaller “eyes” and milder flavor. For a low price and convenience, it's a sturdy Gruyere alternative.

Well, you'll be pleased to know that french onion soup is, in fact, a highly nutritious choice. Onions, as part of the Allium family, contain Quercetin which is a powerful anti-inflammatory and should not be overlooked as a vegetable when considering your daily 7-a-day.

Best Broth for French Onion Soup

Take your pick; they're all good. Next comes the stock, which is the second most important component of the soup. Traditionally, the stock of choice for French onion soup is beef stock, but beef stock is very time-consuming to make at home.

Introduction: French Onion Soup

Unlike many chain restaurants' (and I have tried many chain restaurants' French Onion Soup), this soup base is a delicate clear liquid.

Consommé: Concentrated Soup Stock. Danilo Alfaro has published more than 800 recipes and tutorials focused on making complicated culinary techniques approachable to home cooks. Consommé (pronounced "con-som-AY") is a strong, rich, flavorful soup made by concentrating and clarifying stock.

Consommé is one of those classic French techniques anyone who attends cooking school learns to do. I've seen all sorts of chefs roll their eyes at consommé as boring or overly fussy. But at its best, consommé is powerfully flavored broth so clear you can read the Bible through it.