Awesome French Onion Soup |
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Prep Time: 0 Minutes Cook Time: 30 Minutes |
Ready In: 30 Minutes Servings: 68 |
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Awesome is a rare quality & not a term to be used lightly. This soup disserves the name Awesome. The secret is in how the onions are caramelized; do not skimp on this: It may seem excessive but it is not. My thanks to Cooks Illustrated for leading me through the minefields on this one. Read more . For the best flavor, make the soup a day or 2 in advance & refrigerate Ingredients:
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter; use oil for vegetarian. |
• 6 large yellow (as in not read) onions (about 4 pounds), thinly sliced. |
• table salt |
• 2 cups water, plus additional for deglazing. |
• 1/2 cup dry white wine (don’t leave home without it) |
• 4 cups chicken broth. |
• 2 cups beef broth. |
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme. |
• 1 bay leaf |
• fresh ground black pepper |
Directions:
1. 1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. 2. Generously brush the inside of a large Dutch oven with oil or spray with nonstick cooking spray. Place the butter in the pot and add the onions and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, covered, for 1 hour. Remove the pot from the oven and stir the onions, scraping the bottom and sides of the pot. Return the pot to the oven with the lid slightly ajar and continue to cook until the onions are very soft and golden brown, 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours longer, stirring the onions and scraping bottom and sides of pot half way through.
3. 3. Carefully remove pot from oven and place over medium-high heat. Cook onions, stirring frequently and scraping bottom and sides of pot, until the liquid evaporates and the onions brown, 15 to 20 minutes, reducing the heat to medium if the onions are browning too quickly. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the pot bottom is coated with a dark crust, roughly 6 to 8 minutes, adjusting the heat as necessary. (Scrape any food that collects on spoon back into onions.)
4. 4. Stir in 1/4 cup water, scraping the pot bottom to loosen crust, and cook until water evaporates and pot bottom has formed another dark crust, 6 to 8 minutes. Repeat process of deglazing 2 or 3 more times, until onions are very dark brown. Stir in the wine and cook, stirring frequently, until the sherry evaporates, about 5 minutes.
5. 5. Stir in the broths, 2 cups of water, thyme, bay leaf, and 1/2 teaspoon salt, scraping up any final bits of browned crust on bottom and sides of pot.
6. 6. Increase heat to high and bring to simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove and discard herbs, then season with salt and pepper.
7. How about some Cheese Croutons and a crisp green salad with this? If no Cheese Croutons a dollop of Cream Cheese wouldn’t go amiss.
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