Humble yet utterly irresistible French Onion Soup is simple to make. With its rich, savoury broth, tender caramelized onions, topped with a blanket of bubbling, golden-brown cheese toast , this comforting dish is warming and satisfying .
Oh yes and its also cheap to make so win, win!
I don't know about you but,when the weather turns a little colder in the autumn it not long before I start to think about soup.
How to Make Perfect French Onion Soup
French onion soup is a really easy and cheap soup to make, but you do need to take a little time to cook the onions - slowly! Cook over a gently heat, so that the sugars in the onion caramalise without burning.
To be honest, I was a little impatient when making this soup to take the pictures, and should have given them a little longer until they were more golden. Don't make the same mistake and rush this step. Your time will be rewarded.
If you cook them too fast the onions will burn and taste bitter. Don't cook them enough and the soup will be pale and won't have a beautiful rich onion flavour.
That's it! That's all you really need to know when making this soup. Apart from that, it is really simple.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- Oil – I used extra virgin olive oil or cold pressed rapeseed oil
- Butter – adds richness to the flavour combining iwth oil helps to prevent the butter from burning
- Mild onions – sliced
- Dark muscovado sugar – Adds richness, colour and a little sweetness to the soup
- Plain flour – thickens the soup slightly
- Beef or vegetable stock – Use a good quality stock for the soup
- Bay leaves
- Dried thyme
- French bread
- Cheese – gruyere is traditional but you can substitute cheddar
Step by step French onion Soup
French Onion Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon Oil olive or rapeseed oil
- 25 g butter (1oz)
- 500 g mild onions sliced (1lb 2oz)
- 1 teaspoon dark muscovado sugar
- 1 tablespoon plain flour
- 1.2 litres good beef or vegetable stock (2½ pints)
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 8 slices French bread
- 25 g gruyere cheese grated (1oz)
Instructions
- Heat the oil and butter in a large sauce pan and gently sauté the onions for about 20 minutes, until they have turned a pale golden colour. Stir frequently to prevent them from burning.
- Sprinkle the sugar and flour into the pan and cook stirring for a few seconds.
- Gradually stir in the stock and bring to the boil. Add the bay leaves and thyme. Reduce the heat, cove, and simmer gently for 30 minutes.
- Sprinkle the cheese over the bread slices and place under a preheated grill until the cheese has melted and bubbles.
- Remove the bay leaves and discard. Spoon the soup into warm serving bowls and float the cheese topped toasts on top of the soup. Serve immediately.
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