Soups & Salads · European

French Onion Soup

Name: French Onion Soup
Total time: 105 min
Yield: 2
Ingredients: 2 lb onion (halved pole to pole, sliced thin); 2 tbsp butter; 1 tbsp olive oil; 1 tsp salt; 1 clove garlic (minced); 1 tbsp flour; ½ cup dry white wine; 1 l beef stock; 3 sprig thyme; 1 unit bay leaf; ½ tsp black pepper (ground); 4 slice bread, baguette or country loaf (thick slices, dried); 4 oz gruyère (grated)

13 ingredients · 105 minutes · 2 servings

Cook Now

827kcal32.5g protein39.5g fat79.2g carbs~$4.99/ serving*

No pork

Contains: gluten, dairy

Ingredients

Servings:

2 lb	onion (halved pole to pole, sliced thin)
2 tbsp	butter
1 tbsp	olive oil
1 tsp	salt
1 clove	garlic (minced)
1 tbsp	flour
½ cup	dry white wine
1 l	beef stock
3 sprig	thyme
1 unit	bay leaf
½ tsp	black pepper (ground)
4 slice	bread, baguette or country loaf (thick slices, dried)
4 oz	gruyère (grated)
1 tbsp	brandyoptional
½ tsp	sugaroptional
2 tbsp	cheese-parmesan (grated, over the gruyère)optional
1 tsp	red wine vinegaroptional

Method

slice10 min
onion halved through the root and sliced with the grain, about 3 mm — slices cut with the grain hold together through an hour of stirring, while crosswise rings shred into threads and disappear into the broth
sweat15 min
medium, lid on
onion + butter + olive oil + salt, covered, until the onions collapse and sit in their own liquid; the salt pulls that water out and the lid keeps it in, so this stage softens rather than browns
caramelize45 min
medium-low, uncovered
lid off, stirring every 4–5 minutes and scraping the brown film off the bottom back into the mass, until the onions are the colour of dark tea and reduced to about a cup — the sweetness is Maillard browning plus sugar inversion, and it cannot be hurried past the point where the pan runs dry and the fond scorches; if it darkens fast at the edges, add a splash of water, scrape, and lower the heat
saute2 min
medium
+ garlic + flour, stirring constantly — the flour cooks off its raw taste here and gives the finished soup just enough body to coat a spoon; more than a tablespoon per litre turns it into gravy
deglaze4 min
medium-high
+ dry white wine, scraping until the pan bottom is clean and the liquid has reduced to a glaze; the alcohol dissolves the browned residue that plain stock leaves stuck to the metal, and reducing it fully removes the raw-wine sharpness
simmer30 min
bare simmer, partly covered
+ beef stock + thyme + bay leaf + black pepper, at a lazy simmer so the onions stay intact; taste at the end and correct salt only then, since the stock concentrates as it goes. Fish out the thyme stems and bay
toast8 min
175°C / 350°F oven
bread slices on a sheet until dry all the way through and slightly hard — a soft crouton wets out in seconds and sinks, taking the cheese cap with it
broil4 min
broiler, high, 15 cm from the element
soup ladled into oven-safe bowls + toast floated on top + gruyère heaped over the bread and out to the rim, until blistered and browned in spots; the cheese must bridge to the bowl edge so it sets into a lid instead of sliding off. Rest 2 minutes before serving — the melted cheese is well above scalding