Okay, so I tried making French onion soup the other day. Let me tell you, it was an experience! I’ve always loved this soup, you know, with that rich, deep flavor and the cheesy bread on top. Thought it would be a fun little project.
First off, I gathered all my ingredients. Onions, obviously, a whole bunch of them. Then some butter, beef broth, and a bit of thyme. I even got some fancy Gruyère cheese ’cause why not treat myself, right?
The real work started with the onions. I sliced them up, and let me tell you, there were tears. Not from sadness, mind you, but those onions were potent! Then I melted some butter in my Dutch oven – this big, heavy pot that’s perfect for slow cooking.
I tossed the onions into the Dutch oven with the melted butter. Now, here’s the key – you gotta caramelize the onions. This means cooking them low and slow until they turn all brown and sweet. It took forever, like, seriously a long time. I was stirring and stirring, making sure they didn’t burn. Patience is a virtue, they say.
- Slice a bunch of onions (be ready for some tears!).
- Melt butter in a Dutch oven.
- Toss in the onions and cook them low and slow.
- Stir, stir, stir until they’re brown and caramelized.
After the onions were finally caramelized, all nice and golden, I poured in the beef broth and threw in some thyme for that herby flavor. I let that simmer for a bit, letting all the flavors get to know each other.
Putting it All Together
Now for the fun part – assembly. I ladled the soup into bowls. Then, I topped each bowl with a slice of crusty bread and a generous handful of that Gruyère cheese.
I popped the bowls under the broiler for a few minutes, just enough to get the cheese all melty and bubbly and a little bit brown on top. You gotta watch it closely, though, ’cause that cheese can go from perfect to burnt in no time.
Finally, it was time to taste! The soup was amazing. That long wait for the onions to caramelize? Totally worth it. They gave the soup this deep, sweet flavor that was just incredible. And the cheesy bread on top? Forget about it, so good!
It was a bit of a process, especially the onion part, but honestly, I’d do it again in a heartbeat. There’s just something so satisfying about making something from scratch and having it turn out so delicious. If you like French onion soup, you gotta try making it yourself. Just be prepared to spend some quality time with your onions!
