We have been trying French onion soup in restaurants for years and my family and friends agree none can compare to my recipe for taste and simplicity of preparation.

Rich and Simple French Onion Soup

unsalted butter

olive oil

onions

beef broth

dry sherry

thyme

salt and pepper

bread

provolone cheese

Swiss cheese, diced

Parmesan cheese

Melt butter with olive oil in an 8 quart stock pot on medium heat. Add onions and continually stir until tender and translucent. Do not brown the onions.


Add beef broth, sherry and thyme. Season with salt and pepper, and simmer for 30 minutes.


Ladle soup into oven safe serving bowls and place one slice of bread on top of each (bread may be broken into pieces if you prefer). Layer each slice of bread with a slice of provolone, 1/2 slice diced Swiss and 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese. Place bowls on cookie sheet and broil in the preheated oven until cheese bubbles and  browns slightly.


Ack! "Do not brown the onions"??? That's the best part of French Onion soup, the rich, caramelized onions! The ingredients for this soup are great, but I did cook my onions until they were a sweet and dark brown (not burnt) before adding the stock and other ingredients. Try it, you will be amazed at the richness it adds. I also like to toast the French bread a bit before it goes onto the soup, the bread is less slimy soggy if it is toasted.

Delicious!!!! I give this 10 stars with a few minor changes. I used less than half the amount of butter, and PLEASE be sure to caramelize the onions! Instead of sherry, I opted for a dry red wine and make sure you toast your bread before putting under the broiler with the cheese. Otherwise it is just too soggy. Thanks!

I LOVE French Onion Soup!!  My hubby and I use to have to go to one of our finer restaurants in town (that is not kid-friendly so we had to find a babysitter too) to get the best onion soup in town but thanks to Lori Levin, I can make it myself!  I sliced about 5 large onions and cooked them for about 40 minutes over med heat, stirring them once in a while.  Then I added 1 minced garlic clove in for about one minute before adding 1/2 cup white wine (a bit more than 2 tbsp!).  I let it cook until almost dry then I sprinkled the onions with flour and cooked that (while constantly stirring) for about 3 minutes.  Then I added 5 cans of beef broth and cooked for about 20 minutes.  I used grated Gruyere and this was absolutely the best french onion soup I have ever had and I can't believe I made it myself!!  Thanks Lori!!

This is very close to a recipe I have been using for the past 30 years or so.  The only changes/suggestions that I would make are to add a tablespoon of Worchester Sauce and use all butter instead of the olive oil. Make sure that you saute the onions well. (Also, make sure that you slice the onions into fairly wide slices, about 1/2-3/4" wide.)  You don't want them burnt, but you do want them browned.  I use Campbell's Double-Rich Beef Consumme and 1/4 cup of Sherry.    For the cheese, I put a tablespoon of FRESH shredded Parmesan cheese on the bottom of the bowl, then ladle on the soup, then top with a large homemade crouton, then the swiss cheese, and another tablespoon of the fresh Parmesan.    For the croutons, take a large wine-glass and press into a slice of thick bread to get the perfect circle for your soup bowl.  Spread with butter and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.  Put in the oven at 250 for about 1/2 hour or until they are dried and crisp.

After ordering this soup many times at restaurants, this recipe reproduces precisely what French Onion Soup is supposed to taste like. Look, French Onion Soup a challenging soup to eat: chunks of chewy cheese and soggy bread floating on top...but it's supposed to be that way. I often suggest additions or subtractions to a recipe, but here I suggest you stick with the recipe as is. I've made this recipe many times exactly as indicated and everyone loves it. Nice job. Easy to make. Tasty.

The basic recipe is very good with easy to find ingredients.  I didn't like fighting with all the bland provalone cheese.  So now I use Gruyere and Romano cheeses for more flavor.  
The sherry is not optional - buy a good one and add it near the end of cooking.  
Use a spanish white onions for more intense flavor (Vidalia if you want it subtler)

OH-MY-GOSH!!  I cannot believe how simple AND delicious this soup is!!  I doubled the recipe and brought this to our family Sunday fiasco and the crock pot was emptied!!  They LOVED it, not to mention they think I can cook!  I used 1 large vidalia onion, 1 large white onion, and about 4-5 med yellow onions (which I put on my sunglasses & stuck tissue up my nose while slicing, time to invest in a slicer as my hubby really thinks I'm a nut, hey, but it worked)!  I sauteed those in the onion and oil then threw it all in the crotch pot.  Oh and I used half of the full strength broth (10.75 oz Campbells), and half swanson, which is diluted.  And I added the Parmesan to the soup as it brewin'.  Thanks so much Lori, it IS great!

I have tried many french onion soups and this is one of the best. It was not salty nor was it overly sweet it was perfectly seasoned. The only thing I had trouble with was judging how much onion to use. I used two large white onions and found that to be perfect. I cooked the onions for a half hour before I added the broth and used the sherry which I think is necessary in making this. This recipe did not need any additional seasonings it's perfect as printed.I did use beef stock instead of broth though. The stock I used is Kitchen Basics and it is sold in a juice box like container. Using it will make any soup much better than canned broth! This recipe is a keeper thanks for sharing Lori!

I've been trying to perfect the onion soup for years, and this recipe served as a perfect base. I try onion soup every chance i get, and I still say mine is the best. This recipe is simple and delicious as is, but here are my tweaks to take it up a notch into perfect (or as close as i've come to date).
1. Use 2 Large Yellow Onions/2 Lg Red Onions
2. Use 1/2 the butter, that's simply too much
3. Caramelize the onions. Naturally. Throw a couple pinches of salt during this process to help the onions sweat.
4. Add 2 cloves minced garlic (w/ onions)
5. Use FRESH THYME Bundle and Bay Leaves and add them WITH the onions.
6. Use 1C Red Wine to deglaze onions. Bring to Boil then Down to simmer and add broth
7. (Here's my magical twist). 6 Cups of Broth - 4 Beef, 2 Chicken (I use Better than Boullioun paste because it's not too salty and therefore I can control the salt)
8. Add 2 tsp Worcestier Sauce (oh...this is key)
9. Chunk and toast french Baguette before adding to soup
10. Shredded GRUYERE Cheese. If you can't find Gruyere, 2 Provolone slices is fine..don't use Swiss. (still dash some parm/romano on there)

Voila.

Caramelized onions are infused in a rich broth then topped with crusty bread and tons of gooey cheese.

rich and simple french onion soup

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes

Total: 65 minutes

Servings: 4

Author : Lori Levin

Ingredients

Instructions

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