French Onion Soup
Sign Up for the Recipe Publishing Newsletter
Classic French Onion Soup Recipe with Sherry
The combination of beef broth and chicken broth gives this French onion soup a lighter flavor than some of the beef broth based ones and the other ingredients add plenty of authentic French onion soup flavor.
The sherry, white wine, and vermouth used in this onion soup recipe add a sweet, complex note at the finish. The soup has Pecorino Romano cheese and Gruyere cheese but you can top it with any melting cheese instead of Gruyere. Emmental, Swiss cheese or anything similar would be fine.
The fresh chives and thyme add an aromatic and herby flavor and this French onion soup makes an impressive appetizer or supper at any get-together. This classic French onion soup recipe is easy to make and you will certainly love the results.
Classic French Onion Soup with Chicken and Beef Broth
Ingredients -
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
¾ cup dry white vermouth
2 ½ lbs onions, thinly sliced
3 cups beef broth
3 cups chicken broth
¼ cup dry sherry
¾ cup dry white wine
2 bay leaves
Bunch fresh thyme
2 cups Gruyere cheese, shredded
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 slices baguette, 1 inch thick
6 tablespoons grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese
Bunch of chives
Preparation:
Put the butter and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a heavy bottomed pan over a medium heat and add the onions. Turn the heat down to low and stir so all the onions is coated. Add some salt and let the onions caramelize slowly for an hour and a half or 2 hours, stirring them occasionally.
Transfer the onions to a bowl.
Turn the heat to high and use the white wine and vermouth to deglaze the pan. Scrape up any brown bits in the pan and let the liquid reduce by half. Put the onions back in the pot and add the beef broth and chicken broth.
Add the thyme, tied up with cooking string, and the bay leaves. Partly cover the pot and let the soup simmer for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, use the rest of the oil to coat the bread slices and sprinkle some salt and pepper on them. Broil until golden brown.
Add the sherry to the soup and let it simmer for 5 more minutes.
Take out the thyme and bay leaves. Some of the thyme leaves will be in the soup, which is fine.
Season to taste.
Put a crouton in each serving bowl, topped with a tablespoon of Pecorino cheese.
Ladle the onion soup over the croutons, and then add the shredded Gruyere on top. Broil until the Gruyere is bubbly and melted, then scatter the chives over the top, and serve.
(Serves 6)
Photo Description:
As you can see from the photo, this rich and meaty classic French onion soup recipe is topped with a layer of Gruyere cheese and some fresh chopped chives for color and flavor. The combination of beef broth and chicken broth lightens up the flavor of this French onion soup and the sherry gives it an elegant flavor. The crouton goes in the bottom of the soup crock and the soup is poured over the top, unlike with some other French onion soup recipes. This is a really good French onion soup recipe and it is well worth making.
Pairing Wine with a Classic French Onion Soup Recipe
A classic French onion soup recipe is as likely to be served as a hearty lunch as a tasty appetizer but in France it used to be a late night treat. People used to flock to the Les Halles area of Paris around 3AM, after a night of partying, to enjoy a classic French onion soup recipe, accompanied by a glass of cheap vin rouge.
Times have changed in the past few decades and French onion soup is now known and enjoyed all over the world. There are lots of different recipes for onion soup but the classic dish is still widely available in restaurants.
Serving wine with your onion soup recipe is perhaps not something to worry about if you are making yourself a warming lunch snack but if you have people coming over for dinner and you want to impress them with your classic French onion soup, you will probably want to impress them with your wine pairing skills as well.
Red Wine and French Onion Soup
A classic French onion soup recipe will be a full flavored mixture of beef broth, rich flavored onions, a layer of melted cheese and hot croutons. A fruity red is the best to choose because very dry wines are quite harsh with French onion soup and can overpower the flavor. Beaujolais or Cabernet are good choices.
Some French onion soup recipes call for wine to be added, as well as or in addition to, vermouth, whisky, brandy, sherry or another liquor. If you are using red wine in the onion soup recipe, you might like to serve the rest with the dish itself.
White Wine and French Onion Soup
A sweet and fruity white wine is the best to choose because it goes nicely with the sweet, creamy onions. Avoid anything too light flavored or dry. A fruity Chardonnay is surprising good with onion soup and does not overpower the flavor. Sauvignon Blanc, a white Burgundy or a White Alsatian wine would also be good with this dish.
Whether you favor red or white wine, a classic French onion soup recipe is good with most types of wine, as long as you pick something strong enough to stand up to the rich beefy broth flavor of the soup and medium or sweet enough not to clash with the meaty sweetness of the onion soup.
If you have used wine in the French onion soup recipe, you might like to serve a glass of that with the soup. If it tastes good in the soup, it will taste good served alongside it too.