French Onion Soup

This was delicious but did require using about twice as many onions as recommended. I used boxed beef broth and added a little Worcestershire and a little fish sauce to up the umami. Added extra sherry. Still missing something...might add fresh thyme next time I prepare. Used fresh homemade sour dough bread which was very easy to spoon through. Also added a touch of Gouda on top for extra meltiness.

too much broth -- use 5 or 6 cups of beef stock. doubled the sherry. onions and oils in the slow cooker for 6ish hours lid on, then 2ish lid off. turn bread into croutons. made 5 satisfying servings.

I rely on the notes because they are so helpful. I took note of adding more sherry I stirred in before ladling into bowls, toasting the bread and cutting into pieces. This was a silky beautiful soup that I will definitely make again-it was excellent.

I loved the soup, but prefer more of a beef broth red wine version. The caramelization process was perfect.

I've always had a problem with the long strings of tasty but very gooey cheese that results from melting Gruyere as this recipe recommends. You almost need 'cheese scissors' to cut the cheese strings. But there is an easy fix for this. A few drops of lemon juice, mixed into the cheese before topping the soup will make the cheese melt more readily and will give the cheese an even deeper and richer, more-nuanced flavor.

The knife or cutting blade used for onions is a very important key. Use knife with thinnest blade possible,preferably with a thinned edge. My tomato slicing serrated knife works great- the onion cells are more intact and release less juice and no eye irritation than with a very sharp chef prep knife. Try side by side with several knives- if you get a lot of juiciness you are pressing and smashing onion cells instead of slicing. Also vertical cuts pole to pole work better than cross cut slices.

Add chicken broth bouillon to water

My husband was a maitre’d at a very nice restaurant when he was young. The chef there used 2 parts beef broth to 1 part chicken broth, and it has a milder flavor. I use 1/3 cup sherry.

I love this recipe! I agree with other reviewers that the more onions the better and be generous with the sherry. I’m not sure what type of onion may be best. Next time I make this I may blend Yellow, red and sweet onions. (Yellow and red may have a stronger flavor?

I got a job as a prep cook at the Trident in Sausalito. We had a French Chef at this Ultimate Hippie place. I marveled at the way Pierre could print money with French Onion soup. I have not lost my reverence for this soup. I do make the croutons differently now. I make a dry toast of good white bread, rub it with raw garlic, spread it with butter and grated real Gruere lightly then toast it dry again. High flavored much lower fat dip the toast in the soup to stay crisp.

I use half beef stock and half chicken stock. I'm going to try it using a dark beer instead of red wine.

I have used a Wok before to caramelize the onions and it works well. 90 minutes for full glorious caramelization. I also add cognac to deglaze the pan instead of sherry for a deeper flavor profile. For a lighter, vegetarian version, I add fresh thyme and a dash of sage to vegetable broth and it is delightful.

Use high quality beef stock of course. We found that Visalia onions are better.

My father used to make this, but once, because a bottle had been mislabeled, used kummel instead of cognac. The caraway flavor was great and that became the standard recipe.

The French bistro in Georgetown where I bartended my college years made a good onion soup with three cheeses melted together on top: provolone, Gruyère, and mozzarella.