This post was originally published here January 4, 2014. I’ve since adjusted the recipe slightly. And I’ve updated the photographs and text.
Hello and Happy New Year!
I hope you all had a fun and relaxing Holiday season! I laid low during that weird week between Christmas and New Years’ Eve. And now I’m slowing trying to get back into the swing of things.
I can’t think of a better way to kick-off 2025 then with my Three-Onion French Onion Soup. It’s a classic. It’s total comfort food (hello below freezing temperatures). And it’s a one-pot meal.
Maybe my resolution should be to make fewer dirty dishes in 2025?
French onion soup is a recipe that might seem intimidating. But it’s truly very easy. I don’t know about you, but I don’t typically associate classic French recipes with a level of simplicity. But this one actually is! It does, however, take some time. Because in order to get the best flavor from your onions, you need to cook them low and slow until they become sweet and caramelized. This process takes a full hour, with stirring every 5-10 minutes. So plan to make this recipe on a day when you have the time.
I have, however, learned one place in this recipe that you can save yourself a significant amount of prep time. And that’s slicing the onions. I always used to do this by hand. But now I use the slicing attachment on my food processor. The onions cook down so much by the end, that it doesn’t matter if all the slices are perfect at the start. So that’s a shortcut that I totally recommend taking if you can!
French onion soup in restaurants always comes served in those cute little crocks with bubbling cheese totally covering the bowl. Which is very yummy! But I don’t have soup bowls that I would trust placing under my broiler. So I make up the cheese toasts separately, then float them on top before serving. It’s way less messy and just as delicious!
Cheers,
Liz
Three-Onion French Onion Soup
Ingredients
For the Soup:
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 yellow onions, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 red onions, peeled and thinly sliced
- 4 leeks, white and light green parts thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
- 1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
- 1/2 cups dry white wine
- 1/2 cup dry sherry
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 8 cups beef stock
- 1 bay leaf
For the Cheese Toasts:
- French bread, sliced into 1/2-inch thick slices
- About 8 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated
- Fresh parsley, minced
Instructions
- In a large heavy-bottom pot, heat and butter and olive oil over medium heat until the butter is melted. Add the sliced onions and leeks, stirring to coat them in the fats. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. The onions should look soft, light brown and their volume should be reduced by about half.
- Stir in the brown sugar, salt and black pepper. Turn the heat down to low and cook the onions for an additional 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Then add the garlic and thyme and cook for an additional 10 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. The onions should be deeply browned.
- Increase the heat to high and add the white wine and sherry. Bring the soup to a simmer and cook, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom on the pan with a wooden spoon, until the liquid is mostly evaporated, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for 1-2 minutes. Then add the beef stock and bay leaf. Adjust the heat to maintain a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes. Taste and add additional salt and black pepper, if necessary. Discard the bay leaf and cover to keep warm.
- Meanwhile, pre-heat your broiler to high. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spread the sliced bread out into a single layer. Slide the baking sheet onto the top rack of your oven and broil the bread just until it’s dry to the touch and lightly browned around the edges, about 1-2 minutes. Then remove the baking sheet and top each slice with some of the shredded cheese. Return the baking sheet to the top rack and broil until the cheese is completely melted and the bread is darkened in some places, about 1-2 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- To serve, ladle the hot soup into bowls and top with a 1-2 cheese toasts and some fresh minced parsley, if desired. Enjoy immediately.
- Leftover soup can be stored in an airtight container in your refrigerator for 2-3 days.
I have been looking to make french onion soup for quite some time and when I saw this with leeks (heart them) I had to try it! It definitely did not disappoint. I waited a few days after buying the ingredients to make the soup and in that short time my french bread got crunchy stale. However, I found that putting it in the bowl with the cheese and then pouring in the soup saved the day. Is there a specific type of white whine or sherry that you prefer to use for this? I had one choice of sherry at the store and tried a white wine that wasn’t as dry as I’d hoped it would be. I am wondering if I could improve the taste by choosing some other wine/sherry combos.
As a side note: I love all of your recipes! So far I’ve made this and the molded Cranberry Sauce. For the first time since I can remember there was NO leftover cranberry sauce by the end of Thanksgiving 🙂 Will definitely be trying more in the near future!
That’s great Casey! I used Fairbanks Sherry and Barnard Griffin Fume Blanc. It would be fun to experiment with different wines. Also, I really want to make a batch with mostly shallots. But they are such a pain to peel (and you would need so many of them!) that I haven’t gotten around to it yet.
Hi Liz,
I just came across your blog. You have so many great recipes! I just made this onion soup and it is so delicious. I practically inhaled the first bowl.
Kim
Glad you found me, Kim!