A tasty, hearty and authentic French Onion Soup. Made with brown onions, white wine, beef stock, and herbs, the rich flavours of the soup are complimented by the grilled Gruyere French bread.
If you're lucky enough to have visited France and tried some authentic French Onion Soup, you will know how good this seemingly simple recipe tastes. If you haven't tried it before, allow me to introduce you to this tasty soup! I guarantee it will become a favourite.
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Ingredient notes:
- Onions: Trusty Brown onions did the trick for me and they are very friendly on the budget.
- Gruyere cheese: A smooth and fruity flavoured cheese traditionally used on top of French onion soup, if you can't find Gruyere a similar flavour would be Swiss cheese or Provolone.
- Beef Stock: Makes up the soup base, Oxo cubes are a handy cheap alternative that work well but a quality beef stock will improve the flavour even more.
Note: Scroll to the recipe card for the ingredients, quantities and the full method.
Step by step instructions:
Sauté butter, sliced onions and 1 tsp salt in a large soup pot for 25 minutes, until golden brown and caramelised.
Towards the end, turn down the heat and stir regularly to prevent burning on the bottom of the pot.
Add the wine and use a wooden spoon to deglaze the pot.
Add the flour and mix well, then pour in the stock and remaining ingredients.
Bring to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.
Slice bread and lightly brown in the toaster, top with grated cheese and grill for a few minutes until cheese is melted and golden brown.
Remove bay leaves and serve the soup hot with the cheesy bread on top (or on the side if you want to keep it crispy!).
Recipe FAQs:
You can grill the cheese on top of the soup if you have oven safe soup bowls. However I find a lot of people don't like how the bread goes soggy while the cheese grills. New Zealand French sticks tend to be a lot softer and lighter than in Europe so the bread absorbs the soup a lot faster. If you want to grill the bread in the soup try to find a denser white loaf of bread.
You could leave the wine out but it does add a lot of flavour to the soup, so I don't recommend it. You could just add half instead. Red wine is fine to substitute into the recipe. The alcohol evaporates completely during the cooking process and leaves behind a rich flavour, so no need to worry about feeding it to kids.
No, this is the most important step of the process for this recipe. Caramelising the onions gives the soup its amazing flavour profile and sweetness. It does require some patience but it will pay off at the end with the final flavour. If the onions are still pale looking after 20 minutes keep cooking them till they are golden brown like in the photo.
Storage:
Store leftover French Onion Soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. Reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave until piping hot.
This soup can also be frozen. Store in an airtight container or freezer bag in the freezer for up three months. Defrost completely before reheating.
Top tips:
If you have extra time caramelise the onions on a lower heat for a longer time, this will enhance the flavour.
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French Onion Soup
A dark broth style soup made with caramelised onions, a splash of wine and topped with crispy gruyere baguettes.
Ingredients
- 50g butter
- 1kg brown onions, sliced
- ¾ cup dry white wine
- 3 Tbsp flour
- 1.5 litres beef stock (3 stock cubes)
- 1 tsp fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- Salt and pepper
To Serve:
- 1 baguette or rustic white loaf
- 150g Gruyere cheese, grated
Instructions
- Sauté butter, sliced onions and 1 tsp salt in a large soup pot for 25 minutes, until golden brown and caramelised. Towards the end, turn down the heat and stir regularly to prevent burning on the bottom of the pot.
- Add the wine and use a wooden spoon to deglaze the pot.
- Add the flour and mix well, then pour in the stock and remaining ingredients.
- Bring to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.
- Slice bread and lightly brown in the toaster, top with grated cheese and grill for a few minutes until cheese is melted and golden brown.
- Remove bay leaves and serve the soup hot with the cheesy bread on top (or on the side if you want to keep it crispy!).
Notes
- You can grill the cheese on top of the soup if you have oven safe soup bowls.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 523Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 45mgSodium: 1262mgCarbohydrates: 65gFiber: 4gSugar: 13gProtein: 24g
Nutritional values are approximate. Please use your own calculations if you require a special diet.
Thank you for checking out this recipe. I hope you enjoy making and eating it! If you have any questions, queries or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below.
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Vanya
Kay says
Hi what wine do u use I don't drink wine so I don't have any idea in what I should get for the recipe. Do I have to use wine?
VJ cooks says
Hi Kay, the wine is pretty important as it gives the soup a real depth of flavour. Without it, it's basically onion broth! You could use a Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay or even a red wine.