French Onion Soup
My first ever french onion soup was at Jack’s Place (i think)! It was eons ago but the taste of caramelized onions with hot melting cheese atop crispy toasted bread never left. This soup has four simple ingredients - onions, soup stock, cheese and bread. Surprisingly or not surprisingly, I can’t recall seeing french onion soup on the menus of restaurants in France. Perhaps at one of those touristy brasseries dotted around the train stops and city center but nevermind that it is hard to find because making this at home is absolutely easy and very satisfying. You need lots of onions and all that slicing may make you tear so perhaps a pair of goggles may help prevent the tear wiping and someone asking if you are okay!
There are 2 essential ingredients in French Onion Soup. The first is the stock! I used beef stock here but you can opt for Fond de Veau (veal stock), chicken stock or vegetable stock. Taste the stock first before adding it to the caramelized onions. You wouldn’t want it too salty or too watery.
Ingredients:
6- 8 large white onions sliced
3 tablespoon unsalted butter
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 litre of beef stock (veal, chicken or vegetable stock)
3 tablespoon cornflour
2 bay leaf
Fine sea salt and black pepper to taste
1 baguette
Grated cheese. (Emmental / Mozzarella / Gruyere)
Instructions:
Prep the onions. Slice all white onions into strips. To prevent the tears, I recommend wearing your largest sunglasses, spectacles, a pair of goggles or if you wear contact lens, I reckon slicing onions will not make you cry :p
Caramelising onions. In a large dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat and add the onions. Sauté well until they are caramelised. This step should take approximately 30 minutes and you should see that the onions have greatly reduced and are brown in colour but not burnt. Add minced garlic, sauté for a few minutes and then stir in the flour. The flour will help add texture and weight to the onions so they do not soften too much.
Toasting the bread. Slice baguette into 1 inch thick pieces, arrange them in a pan and then bake for 5-8 minutes at 180 degrees until the bread is toasted and golden brown on all sides. Let it cool aside to layer over the onion soup after.
Simmer the soup. Using cubed beef stock, pour hot water over the cube until it is well dissolved and add in 2 bay leaves. Add the stock into the dutch oven with caramelised onions in it over low heat until the soup reaches a simmer. This should take approximately 10-15 minutes. Taste the soup and season with salt and pepper and then discard the bay leaves.
The fun part! Once the soup is ready, pour into small cocottes or soup bowls and then add 1-2 slices of toasted bread over. You would want the toasted bread to float on top so do not press down into the soup. Pour a generous layer of grated cheese over the bread and even onto the sides of the bowl. Turn on the broiling function of the oven and let it broil for 3-5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
