We feel better after a good meal. Additionally, making healthy eating choices creates a positive feedback loop that makes you feel good about yourself. Good food benefits you in numerous ways, including by improving your ability to think, making you happy, and relaxing your soul.
French onion soup is made by first caramelising onions in butter, deglazing them with dry white wine, and then finishing the cooking process in beef stock. A hot bowl of soup soothes the mind, and this onion soup is prepared in a way that will utterly astound you. The soup’s creamy flavour and the crunchy flavour of the bread bowl it is served in produce a wonderful mouth-watering combo. So, you can just enjoy this recipe in any weather or any occasion.
Because onions are delicious and generally abundant, onion soup has been a staple of diets throughout history (recipes for it date as far back as the Roman Empire). Caramelising the onions gives this 18th Century French recipe its trademark, hearty sweetness. Topping the soup with melted Gruyere and serving it in a bread boule - named for its ball-shaped - make this dish the complete package.
The wild onion which has a strong flavour, was added to stews by Native Americans in the New World after the Romans introduced the onion to Britain. For generations, people have believed that onions have healing properties. They have been used in folk medicine to treat a wide range of conditions, including colds, earaches, laryngitis, animal bites, burns, and warts.
Before being marketed, the majority of entire onions are lightly dried, leaving their skins paper-thin and dry. Various processed versions of onions are also offered. In jars or cans, boiled and pickled onions are sold. Both chopped and whole frozen onions are available, and canned onion juice is offered for flavouring. Since the 1930s, dehydrated onion products have been available in granulated, ground, minced, chopped, and sliced forms.
Here’s the recipe for French Onion Soup Bread Bowls.
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp olive oil and a little more for drizzling
- ½ cup butter
- 3 large onions (finely sliced)
- 1 garlic clove (finely sliced)
- ¾ cup white wine
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1¾ tbsp brandy
- 5 fresh sprigs thyme leaves and a few more for garnishing
- 4 cups beef stock
- 2 round bread bowls
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 16 slices gruyere cheese
Method:
- Add the oil, butter, and onions to a skillet set over medium-high heat.
- Turn the heat to low, stir everything together, and then cover with a lid or cartouche.
- For 30 minutes, cook onions very slowly until they are completely softened and delicious.
- Return the heat to medium to high and continue cooking the onions until they are golden brown.
- To ensure that nothing sticks to the bottom, stir occasionally.
- The soup will taste better if the onions are caramelised to a deep golden colour.
- Add the white wine and heat until the liquid has slightly reduced after adding the garlic and cooking for an additional minute.
- Cook for two minutes after adding the flour.
- As you pour in the stock and heat to a boil, add the brandy and thyme.
- Stir everything together while turning down the heat. About 30 minutes of gentle cooking.
- Set the oven to 425 degrees while the soup is cooking.
- Slice off the top of the bread boule, hollow out the interior, and leave a 1-inch wall around the perimeter to contain any leaks.
- Add a drizzle of olive oil to the entire bowl and season with a little salt and pepper.
