The Best French Onion Soup out There

Submitted by ForeverMama

"In my opinion, this is the Best French Onion Soup recipe out there. I've made many versions through the years including those where "from scratch" beef and veal stock were used. This is Tyler Florence's recipe and one I and my family request VERY often."

 

• Ready In: 1hr 10mins
• Ingredients: 11
• Serves: 4-6

ingredients

• 1⁄2 cup unsalted butter
• 4 onions, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 fresh thyme sprigs
• kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup red wine, about 1/2 bottle
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 quarts beef broth (I usually make broth using Knorr beef bouillon)
• 1 baguette, sliced
• 1⁄2 lb grated gruyere (use as much cheese as you like when serving. Refer to Note below)

directions

1. Melt the stick of butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and salt and pepper and cook until the onions are very soft and caramelized, about 25 minutes. Add the wine, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the wine has evaporated and the onions are dry, about 5 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Dust the onions with the flour and give them a stir. Turn the heat down to medium low so the flour doesn't burn, and cook for 10 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste. Now add the beef broth, bring the soup back to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
2. When you're ready to eat, preheat the broiler. Arrange the baguette slices on a baking sheet in a single layer. Sprinkle the slices with the Gruyere and broil until bubbly and golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes.
3. Ladle the soup in bowls and float several of the Gruyere croutons on top.
4. Alternative method: Ladle the soup into bowls, top each with 2 slices of bread and top with cheese. Put the bowls into the oven to toast the bread and melt the cheese.
5. NOTE: The amount of cheese depends on your personal taste. We sometimes use more if we want it more cheesy. I've also used a combination of cheeses (but NEVER Velveeta). The best I find is a combination of gruyere, Swiss, combined with a small amount of Parmesan.

Reviews

[DailyInspiration]

We enjoyed this version of french onion soup. The only change I made was to reduce the amount of red wine; otherwise made as directed. Rich and flavorful and the gruyere cheese toast was a wonderful addition. : )