I bet all of you have had an opportunity before to indulge an onion soup, but have you ever had the chance to enjoy a french Onion soup, the queen of all onion soups? What makes it so special is the use of simple common ingredients such as a good stock and flour to bind it. Another main ingredient, that simply can’t be overlooked, is the choice of a good white wine to glaze the soup after frying the Onion rings glossy. In fact that’s the most important recipe step in my opinion and if you do it wrong you will alter the taste. But I shouldn’t overlook the fun part, the technique, the bread layer and “au gratin” cheese, that makes me all happy whenever I poke my spoon into the cheesy goodness.
Luckily, to recreate this soup you don’t need to be a magician or a professional cook and this tim,e I am not going to tell you to include some fancy new ingredient, instead I ll simply advice you to keep an eye out for some good white cooking wines in your locality.
The time when I made this soup, I was in Europe and my mum was so kind to help out a bit while I was clicking the snaps. I kept this recipe at the side all this while for colder days, and as it is raining, as if we were in Europe instead of the tropical Goa, I decided to post it on a grey 2 nd of November, all souls day. We have officially entered the dark cold time of the year, so we can brace ourselves for some nice warm comfortable hours between our 4 walls. To “celebrate” this, I would make a Onion soup, because there is nothing more simple and motivating then having a detoxifying soup waiting for me.
I am not going to explain here today what the health benefits of the common staple food Onion is, since I am a bit busy with the celebrations coming up next week. Don’t worry, you will get to know soon enough and you will be able to celebrate with me together! Anyway, for the time being, I am giving you my beloved Onion soup that has saved my a** so many times and in the meanwhile you can try the recipe and maybe check out more Onion health benefits fact by visiting this interesting page.
Ingredients
- 2 big White Onions
- 4 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- 200 milliliter White Wine
- 1 3/4 liter Water + 2 Beef Maggie Cubes or 1 3/4 liter Beef Stock
- 2 small Bay leaves
- pinch grated Nutmeg
- pinch Salt
- pinch Pepper
- 2-3 crisp 1-2 days old bread
- 150 g grated Emmenthal Cheese (= 30 g each serving)
Instructions
- Start by cutting your Onions into thine rings. Grab a Soup pot and heat up the Olive oil, add in the Onion and stir fry frequently until they are glossy, transparent and soft.
- Now add in the white flour and quickly stir fry for a minute. Continue to pour in all the White wine at this point and stir mix it all well. Keep on medium to slow heat!
- After 2-3 minutes heating up the whole content again, add the remaining liquid, either water with the Maggi cubes dissolved and mixed in or the beef stock. Stir well! Season your soup by adding in the Bay leaves, Nutmeg and Salt. Cook for about 30 minutes!
- Cut your hard crisp bread into bite size pieces and place them into the prepared soup bowls.
- When the soup is finished cooked, season with pepper and mix. Now pour the soup with the Onions into each bowl as shown. Top with grated Emmenthal and place the bowls into the oven for a couple of minutes until the cheese is melted on top. Serve hot!
Added to >>> http://www.thelady8home.com/2012/11/01/menu-finds-with-weekend-gala-extravaganza-dinner-party-8/
{ 43 comments… read them below or add one }
Yumm! Can cheddar be used instead of emmenthal?
Hi renita!
Yes you can but I would always choose emmenthal, but I guess that’s a taste preference story. =)
I’d cut the onions finer then use melted butter to sweat them until softened. Then I would use red wine rather than white.
To serve, I would put the soup into bowls then float the bread on top then melt Gruyere on top of that.
Would still be a great French Onion soup in the way that you made it Helene and it is a dish that I love
It’s addictive right? =D On Sunday I permitted myself to try your version, but without Gruyere since we don’t get that here, and it was nice, but I d still choose my soup. We grew up with that recipe I posted and it works fine with me. =)
The soup looks amazing! I could definitely do with a large bowl of this soup. So warm, soothing and comforting!
thank you Asmita! Maybe I ll make you some one day.
Oh my goodness, I can see why this Onion Soup has saved you so many times. It is absolutely delish! Thanks for sharing. I could use a bowlful of this right now on this cold day here. Thanks for the blog visit & kind support
thank you for your compliments, I know you ll treasure it in the cold. oh and it is my pleasure, love all your work Elizabeth!
LOVE it!! One of my fav soup..A best example of fine french cooking!!! Although I do it with veg stock & sans white wine it surprisingly tastes good..And Helena, I loved that pic with all the ladles and the wine in the background!!
Awesome post..!!
Hi Prathima, I thought so that you would prefer it without wine and with veg stock, and I agree it still tastes awesome. lol that picture shows my mums kitchen goodies.
Emmenthal would be my choice too. The soup looks irresistible.
=) thanks Angie!
This is such a classic. I love French onion soup but never think about it when I’m in the mood to make soup. Thanks for the inspiration!
I am happy that I inspired you, I know you will enjoy it. =)
I love French Onion soup and you are right that it’s great for cold, dark days. It’s such a bowl of comfort. I love how you served it xx
Oh yes its so comforting and relaxing int he same time, glad you see it the same way Charlie.
Mmmmm….I make this every year, but I love reading all your tips! I think I’ve always used Gruyere, but I’ll make it with Emmenthal next
Yours looks fantastic!
Well, you can try around with the cheese choice. Our choice is always emmenthal but as you can see, some prefer it with gruyere.
Nothing beats a classic like onion soup on a cool day, cool photos Helene!
thanks food dude!
glad to see u here.
Mmm onion soup is a weakness for me my friend bookmarked this
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
lol I am not surprised Uru, its really one of the best soups in this world.
that’s really hearty and special
with au gratin and all..
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Give it a try and let me know what you think. I like to hear everybody’s opinion.
I’ve never tried the famous onion soup!! Now I feel very inspired to give it a go. Your soup looks very creamy. I look forward to read the post about the Goa Celebrations!
Oh yes, Rita you gotta try it out, its so amazing! See you on Friday XD!
What a fabulous soup Helene!! LOVE it!! I have always wanted a great French Onion soup recipe, and this is perfect.
I am so sorry you weren’t able to link….actually it requires an active back link, that is why it’s not letting you link. Could you activate the link? Then I can upload the recipe right away. It’s such a gorgeous recipe!
Hey Minnie, thank you and glad I was of a help here with my recipe. =)
no worries dear, I thought the link above to your blog is active, maybe I am missing something somewhere. I ll check it out!
Great soup! One of my favs. I make mine slightly different. I cook the onions for quite a well until brown (at least 30 minutes); sometimes I’ll add a bit of sugar to help caramelize them. Then I’ll add the flour to make a roux and follow essentially your procedure. I’ll sometimes add a bit of cognac in addition to white wine, as I like the enhanced flavor. Anyway, one of the best soups going! I’ll definitely try your version someday. Thanks.
Oh yes, caramelizing the onion and making a roux is another way that I would suggest and totaly support! Thats the way we would make it in college time. =) The cognac addition is new to me, glad that I always learn something new and useful from you John!
Can you believe I’ve never had French onion soup. And it’s funny because I saw it on a menu today and thought that I really want to try it. Now, I know how to make it.
Can’t wait to hear about your celebrations. Fun!
wow, then its about time to try it out. =) I bet your kids will love it, at least that’s a recipe that I have loved since ever, even though I remember being difficult with soups as a child.
Oh you just made the best soup in the world! There is nothing better! I’m a huge fan, but have never made it myself. There is a little French restaurant that we frequent and that is always the starter for my meal. I guess it’s time I start making it at home. Thanks for this wonderful recipe!
Yes I agree MJ, the onion soup is legendary in the world. =) Let me know how you liked it MJ!
This is my husband’s and my favorite soup!!! We made it once before but took some time to make it (but worth it!). I love your big soup bowl for this!
yay, maybe we should start an onion soup club! ^.^ That recipe above is quite a quick one, so that wont take up much of your time.
Heh, I never tried it with white wine before – it’s a favourite soup of mine but I’ve always used red wine and also a splash of port or sherry. Did you ever try it with a bit of thyme in as well? That’s such a good flavour with onion soup – looks lovely Helene!
Very interesting, because in my house in france it has always been made with white wine and without any other alcohol type. Nope never tried with thyme either. I kind of loved my mother/grandmothers recipe so much that I never dared to change it as such. Since I tried Ians way of preparing the Onion soup I will try your thyme addition in the next weeks as well. =) thanks for the idea Charles!
I love French Onion Soup, especially with some cheesey toasts. Looks very mourish
yep the cheesy toastiness gives it the extra delicious kick! =P
That looks so good and comforting!! Gimme a bowl now
I’m not a huge fan of onions (the husband is), but I bet with all the “sweating”, the onions are milder and sweet tasting!
Emmenthal is a lovely choice! The soup looks fantastic! I totally want to dig in!
Cheesy goodness for sure, YUM! Onion soup is my all time favorite soup, and I for sure do not make it enough:-) Your recipe looks fantastic! Hugs, Terra