French
French Onion Soup
Soupe a l'oignon gratinee. Almost nothing in it but onions, and the entire dish depends on caramelising them far longer than feels reasonable.
- Time
- 1 hr 30 mins
- Serves
- 4
- Steps
- 7
- Ingredients
- 10
Method
- 01
Melt the butter in a heavy pot and add the onions with a good pinch of salt.
- 02
Cook over medium-low heat for 50 minutes, stirring every few minutes. They should collapse to a deep jammy brown - at 20 minutes they are only soft, which is not the same thing.
- 03
Scrape the dark crust off the bottom of the pot as it builds; that is pure flavour.
- 04
Stir in the flour and cook 2 minutes.
- 05
Pour in the extra cup of stock with the lemon juice, scraping the base clean, and reduce by half.
- 06
Add the stock, thyme and bay, then simmer 30 minutes and season.
- 07
Ladle into ovenproof bowls, float toasted baguette on top, bury it in gruyere and grill until bubbling and blistered.
Cooking Tips
- Give the onions the full 50 minutes. At 20 minutes they are merely soft, which is not the same as caramelised.
- Scrape the dark crust off the bottom of the pot as it builds - that is pure flavour going back into the soup.
Ingredient Substitutions
- Extra stock plus lemon juice replaces the usual splash of wine and keeps this alcohol-free.
- Comte or a mature cheddar can stand in for gruyere.
What to Serve With It
- Serve in ovenproof bowls, grilled until the cheese blisters.
Storage and Reheating
- The soup base keeps 4 days and freezes for 3 months. Add bread and cheese only at serving.
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