French onion soup

I tried doing a seach for French Onion Soup recipes which yielded nothing. Anyone have a good recipe that doesn't involve using a mix?

Thanks!
B

Really?

ok...lemme rephrase. I did a TT search for recipes. I could have done google just fine but I wanted recipes that people might have tried and recommended. My bad.

Sorry, can't help you there.. But the first one did look good.

my mom has a great recipe, I don't have it here, but I know I've made it and its easy...

will try to get the recipe from her

Don't need a mix. I like to sweat off a load of spanish onions and some garlic in loads of butter until they start to turn brown. Season, add some italian herb mix (if you do not have fresh, but not too much or it will overpower the dish) and add part chicken stock, part white wine as well as a bit of sherry and a bay leaf or two. Let it simmer for as long as possible and season further if needed. If you have any fat globuals then skim these off the surface as much as possible. You want to achieve a nice, rich brown colour..

Get a baguette and slice it into generous sized pieces. Slice diagonally to get the maximum size. Toast each slice and rub over some garlic (again, not too much). Grate some cheese stringy cheese -I like to use Gruyiere . season with a bit of pepper and pop under the grill. Place a slice on the surface of each bowl...

I used it ages ago and it tasted quite nice. No mixing required.

mine uses a beef stock instead of chicken. Hmm! that is interesting. Probably makes it lighter in colour too.

Indeed. I guess it is a matter of taste. I have had it with beef stock before but somehow I prefer the chicken. A good sherry to give it that lovely distinctive flavout

think I will try it next time, as I love onion soup... is such a nice comfort food. Actually most soups are a nice comfort food.

A few I have had in restaurants just did not have enough onions if you ask me. I do use a ton of them to add "extra comfort"..

that is the best part of home made, its almost like a onion stew!

Just like my borscht... love my soups thick.

This is one of my favourites, with a very simple recipe and two secrets to making it work - use good white wine, and brown the onions completely and carefully to get the colour right. Sorry, but traditional French onion soup is a thin soup with visible onion slices in it.

I don't use measured quantities, cooking must be done by feeling not by precision, so here's the recipe:

--- Ingredients:
Large saucepan with heavy bottom & tight fitting lid
A good helping of onions (10-15 of typical size), far more than you think - they shrink to nothing
Lump of butter (do not use oil of any description, it's 'French' onion soup, not 'bland diet low cal onion soup'!)
A few cloves of fresh garlic, crushed
1-5 teaspoons of sugar, to taste & depending on stock & wine used
Several pints of chicken stock, made from a chicken, not a cube
Salt & pepper to taste
White wine with a good flavour, not a light wine

--- Method:
Heat the pan and melt the butter, do not let the butter brown or it will taste bitter.
Add the garlic and fry gently, to a gentle golden colour.
Peel and slice the onions. They don't need to be chopped, if you cut them too small they'll turn to sludge when frying.
Add the onions to pan and sweat down at moderate heat with lid on until limp.
Remove the lid, increase the heat and add the sugar. Fry the onion mixture until golden brown and the sugar is caramelising. Don't stir too often, stir when the mixture starts to stick.
When a good golden colour, add the stock and bring to boil, skimming off any white scum that may form on the surface.
When hot add the wine to taste.

Serve with cheesy croutons floating on top. Fantastic.

Thanks guys! I'll try these out when I get back (which won't be soon enough)! I've been on the road too long! I'll let you know how it goes...

Don't try and bake me a cake then. Cooking is an art, but baking is a science.

Mom is back from the lake, so I got her to send our recipe. Its easy to do and very yummy!

Onion Soup

- 1/3 cup butter
- 2 lbs. Onions thinly sliced
- 3 OXO Beef Cubes
- 3 OXO Chicken Cubes
- 6 cups boiling water
- ¼ tsp. Pepper
- 1 tbsp instant coffee powder
- 6 slices white bread, toasted (crusty French bread preferable
- 6 slices Mozzarella or Gruyere cheese
- 4 tbsp. Grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

Melt butter in heavy saucepan. Add onions and sauté over low heat until golden. Dissolve OXO cubes in boiling water. Gradually stir into the onion. Add pepper and coffee powder. Cover and cook over low heat, 30 minutes. Adjust seasoning. Pour into ovenproof tureen or individual bowls. Place bread on top of soup and cover with cheese slices. Bake for 20 minutes in 325 deg oven. Then set under the broiler for 1 minute to brown top lightly. Remove from over, sprinkle with grated cheese and serve at once. Serves 5 – 6.

I reckon that the best way to make a good onion soup is to slow roast the onions. Takes a good hour, but you don't have to put up with the onions frying for half an hour. If you get it just right it really, really, really tastes good.

There are really 2 "classic" onion soups. The most well known one (internationally) is really dark, uses well caramelised onions, beef stock, and has shitloads of cheese on the crouton. The "proper" French version hardly colours the onions in butter, flour is added, and then white stock and Madeira. Croutons are oven dried and no cheese is used.

If you go for the caramelised onion route, you HAVE to cook the onion really slowly, so they caramelise in their own sugars. If you try and do it too fast, you are gonna get a seriously bitter edge to the flavour. Slow roasting them in the oven is a good call indeed.
Adding dried herbs will be quite rubbish, because they'll just end up as hard bits of grit in the soup. Better to whack a load of dried herbs into the stock when you are making that (unless you are planning to use OXO cubes)

Instant coffee and mozzarella slices??? Only the yanks...

You are so off! I am not a Yank.

Would you place a whole ball of Mozzeralla on the bread for your soup? Or would you slice it?