FRENCH ONION SOUP rough draft

French Onion Soup To Die For

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

4 hours

Total time

4 hours 5 mins

 

This is authentic "French" onion soup. It is not difficult to make and the hands on process is only toward the end of the recipe. The onions do require a lot of time in the oven to caramelize. But it is well worth it.

Author: Good Dinner Mom

Recipe type: Soup

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• Soup
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
• 6 large yellow onions (about 4 pounds), halved and cut pole to pole into ¼-inch-thick slices (do NOT substitute for any other type of onion)
• 2 cups water, plus extra for deglazing
• ½ cup dry sherry or cooking sherry
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 cups beef broth
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme, tied with kitchen twine
• 1 bay leaf
• Ground black pepper
• Cheese Croutons
• 1 small baguette, cut into ½-inch slices (If making gluten free, omit bread or better yet, use a hearty gluten free bread, like Udi's)
• 8 ounces shredded Gruyère cheese (about 2½ cups)

Instructions

1. For the soup:
2. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Generously spray inside of heavy-bottomed large (at least 7-quart) Dutch oven with nonstick cooking spray. Place butter in pot and add onions and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, covered, 1 hour (onions will be moist and slightly reduced in volume). Remove pot from oven and stir onions, scraping bottom and sides of pot. Return pot to oven with lid slightly ajar and continue to cook until onions are very soft and golden brown, 1½ to 1¾ hours longer, stirring onions and scraping bottom and sides of pot after 1 hour.
3. Carefully remove pot from oven and place over medium-high heat. Using oven mitts to handle pot, cook onions, stirring frequently and scraping bottom and sides of pot, until liquid evaporates and onions brown, 15 to 20 minutes, reducing heat to medium if onions are browning too quickly. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until pot bottom is coated with dark crust, 6 to 8 minutes, adjusting heat as necessary. (Scrape any fond that collects on spoon back into onions.) Stir in ¼ cup water, scraping pot bottom to loosen crust, and cook until water evaporates and pot bottom has formed another dark crust, 6 to 8 minutes. Repeat process of deglazing 2 or 3 more times, until onions are very dark brown. Stir in sherry and cook, stirring frequently, until sherry evaporates, about 5 minutes.
4. Stir in broths, 2 cups water, thyme, bay leaf, and ½ teaspoon salt, scraping up any final bits of browned crust on bottom and sides of pot. Increase heat to high and barely bring to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 30 minutes. Remove and discard herbs, then season with salt and pepper.
5. For the croutons:
6. While soup simmers, arrange baguette slices in single layer on baking sheet and bake in 400-degree oven until bread is dry, crisp, and golden at edges, about 10 minutes. Set aside.
7. To serve:
8. Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Set individual broiler-safe crocks on baking sheet and fill each with about 1¾ cups soup. Top each bowl with 1 or 2 baguette slices (do not overlap slices) and sprinkle evenly with Gruyère. Broil until cheese is melted and bubbly around edges, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

A little note on “crying over your onions”. Many of us cry when slicing onions. It just happens. And the reason it happens is there are certain enzymes in onions that, when cut, release a sulphuric acid which irritates your eyes. There are many supposed remedies to prevent crying (light a candle, bite on a wooden spoon, freeze the onions). But the simple method that is tried and true: Protect your eyes. There are actually “onion goggles” out there you could buy, but just put on a pair of safety goggles or even swim goggles if you want ultra protection. Then you’ll look like you really mean business and you’ll stay dry-eyed through all 6 onions!