Description
A classic French Onion Soup recipe featuring slowly caramelized onions simmered in rich beef stock and thyme, topped with toasted baguette slices and melted Comté cheese for a warm, comforting meal perfect for cozy evenings.
Ingredients
Scale
Soup
- 8 onions, thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled
- 50g butter
- 1200ml beef stock
- 15g fresh thyme
- Salt, to taste
- Olive oil, for cooking
Topping
- 400g baguette, sliced
- 150g Comté cheese, grated
Instructions
- Prepare Onions and Garlic: Thinly slice the onions and peel the garlic cloves to have them ready for cooking.
- Heat Oil and Salt: In a large saucepan, heat a drizzle of olive oil over medium heat. Add a pinch of salt to help the onions release their moisture.
- Caramelize Onions: Cook the onions slowly over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until they become soft and turn a pale golden color, which should take about 30 minutes.
- Add Garlic and Butter: Stir in the peeled garlic cloves and butter, then continue cooking for an additional 5 minutes until fragrant and combined.
- Simmer Soup: Pour in the beef stock and add the thyme sprigs. Let the soup simmer gently for 10 minutes to meld the flavors.
- Season: Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning with salt if necessary.
- Assemble Bowls: Divide the soup evenly into oven-proof bowls. Place a few slices of baguette on top of each bowl and generously sprinkle with the grated Comté cheese.
- Broil Cheese: Place the bowls under a broiler until the cheese melts, becomes bubbly, and lightly browned.
Notes
- Slowly caramelizing the onions is crucial to develop the soup’s deep, sweet flavor.
- Use a good quality beef stock for rich taste.
- Comté cheese melts beautifully, but Gruyère can be used as a substitute.
- Use oven-proof bowls to safely broil the cheese topping.
- For a vegetarian version, replace beef stock with vegetable stock.
- Be careful when handling hot bowls out of the oven.