Gourmet Spotlight: Onion Transformed
September 9, 2009
Perhaps it was the decadent menu at Bouchon, or perhaps it was the crisp morning autumn air. Or perhaps it’s just the color caramel itself. But all of a sudden I was craving French Onion Soup. Oh. Pardonnez-moi, Monsieur Keller. Soupe à l’Oignon.
Now you know I love a good transformation. Especially one where a raw bland object with hidden potential gets transformed into sweet and sassy goodness. And I’m a sucker for a great before and after. It must be why I love how a yellow onion becomes the most savory gourmet delight in an hour.
I have a serious love affair with caramelized onions. I could eat them on my scrambled eggs, over potatoes, on steaks, over flatbread, and always with cheese. Glorious oozing melting cheese. They are one of those culinary delights that make a germ sensitive mom like me lick her fingers without any regret.
And with my caramelized onions, I make the most fabulous French Onion Soup.
Onions and apples, squash and sage. Fall cooking is pure comfort food. My caramelized onions find their way into plenty of hors d’oeuvres and light meals. For special guests and occasions, they go one step further and become the ultimate first course.
Simple Caramelized Onions
Caramelized onions couldn’t be easier. To start, grab a bag of yellow onions from the local store. I cook up an entire 10 pound bag in two pots.
Slice them up in small strips.
There will be an opportunity at the end to share your secrets to cutting onions and avoiding tears. Mine is simply this little food processing tool. It does all the dirty work for me. Confession: I fell prey to one of those late night infomercials several years ago.
Melt a stick of unsalted butter in your pot, and add two teaspoons of cooking oil. Am I alone in this, or do you also find melting butter rather attractive? I do. Hence, the photo.
Add four to five pounds of sliced onions to your pot, and stir every few minutes for about 45 minutes. Once your onions start to brown, watch them so that they don’t burn. Then observe the magic happening. The natural sugars buried deep inside transform during the cooking process to become your best culinary friend.
Once they are a rich caramel color, I like to add about 3 tablespoons of brown sugar and 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar. Then I reduce them in the liquid for about 10 more minutes. When they’re done, I spoon them into jars for future use, and I refrigerate. ** Author’s note after several comments: They will keep in a cold fridge for up to two weeks.
Use them in this Cranberry and Cream Cheese appetizer recipe from Southern Living.
Image: Southern Living
Or drizzle them with cheese over a baked potato in this recipe from Cooking Light at MyRecipes.com.
Image: Becky Luigart-Stayner
Or try Smitten Kitchen’s recipe for Caramelized Onion & Goat Cheese Cornbread.
Image: Smitten Kitchen
This next recipe is my own time tested version of French Onion Soup. It has the simplest ingredients, and is almost too easy to justify it’s amazing flavor.
French Onion Soup for Eight:
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5 lbs yellow onions, thinly sliced in strips
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1 stick unsalted butter
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2 tsp vegetable oil
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1.5 cups dry sherry
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Four 14 oz. cans low sodium chicken broth (or 8 cups)
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6 oz. gruyere cheese (or similar style of cheese)
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Sliced sourdough rounds
Melt butter in pan and add oil. Cook onions over medium low heat for approximately 50 minutes until caramelized (see above). Add dry sherry and bring to a boil. Reduce for 5 minutes. Add chicken broth and simmer soup on low for another 45 to 50 minutes.
Entertainer’s tip: If preparing in advance, then cover and refrigerate earlier in the day. Later, you can bring the soup to simmer, then spoon soup into ramekins or soup bowls.
These miniature Brunswick Soup Pots I picked up for $4 each at Crate + Barrel last year. This year’s version comes in creamy white. They’re oven-safe and make a nice homey presentation for your family or dinner guests.
Cut your sourdough crouton by turning the soup bowl upside down and carving a perfect size round. Lightly toast to achieve browned edge.
Layer with a few slices of gruyere or similar style cheese.
Place on a baking dish under low broiler for 3 to 4 minutes to allow cheese to melt. Serve hot to table.
On a crisp autumn evening, there is nothing like the bubbling goodness of melted gruyere over a sourdough crouton in a soup bowl.
And as any lover of French Onion soup knows, the best part is the moment your spoon hits the cheese and penetrates that sourdough crouton. It’s magical.
I like to serve mine with sliced pear and some additional cheese. Très élégant. Add some extra bread and a glass of red, and it’s a little piece of heaven.
I once served it to my in-laws and watched their eyes roll back in their heads.
Here’s a final touch. Send your guests home with their own little jar of your own savory concoction, with a personalized label. You’ll kill ‘em if you include a recipe for them to recreate the soup later in the week. Translation: “Why yes, I am the perfect hostess, thank you very much.”
How many of you know and love the Soupe à l’Oignon? What secrets can you share about cutting onions without crying a river of tears?
JULIA above….. what a crack-up! I used to wear my scuba-mask to peel and cut onions too! I started using it the first time I ever made pickled pearl onions – which I will never make again. Just buy em’.
Can someone tell me how long the caramelized onions can be kept in the fridge in sealed jars ??
I’m a great admirer of the caramelized onions….on just about everything.
Light a fire next to your onions while you cut, I use the stovetop. Works every single time. I cut onions weekly and it has not failed me.
That looks absolutely incredible. Why would you do this to us?? Just kidding – I need to make this soon! It seems like something I can make on my meager budget. Thanks!!! Can’t wait to taste this version!
I think you’ve just solved a problem I was having. I will be going to the Outer Banks with friends in October. We each have responsibility for one night’s dinner. The obvious thing would be to use seafood, but I think your Onion Soup would be perfect. Can’t you just picture us enjoying your soup while watching the waves break on the beach and feeling a cool ocean breeze. Perfect!
This sounds so good and I know my family would love it. I could never chop all of those onions though, I can’t even get through one without going blind or having to run out of the kitchen to find the Visine. I’m sure the hubs wouldn’t mind cooking it, though. He love to caramelize onions.
I migh be committing a cooking sin, but I put onions in the fridge the night before I am going to use them. Never had a problem with tears. But, if I use a room temperature onion, I cry every time.
i have these – my husband gave me them in my stocking for Christmas one year – they look dorky and ugly, but they work – onion goggles
http://www.amazon.com/RSVP-International-Onion-Goggles-Black/dp/B0014SQU1A
This makes me want to make my French Onion soup recipe. Which is very similar to yours. Love the jar with the caramelized onions. Very cute! Helen…thanks for that link. I will have to get some of those goggles. Those onions get me every time.
My husband likes it, although I do not. It LOOKS good, but I am not a fan of so much onion. Unfortunate, it looks delicious. :(
Made this recipe last night! LOVE IT!
My mother taught me years ago to chill onions in the frig first and then slice – an old Cajun trick!
Really keeps the fumes down. Thank you for this wonderful article and recipes. I’m eagerly waiting for
our first fall evening in Dallas and your yummy onion soup!
I love your recipe and presentation. My recipe calls for beef broth, but will defineitely try yours. I love onions too. I keep my onions in the fridge and run them under cold water before I chop. Thanks for sharing.
I haven’t tried it, but I read on a Snapple cap once that if you chew gum while chopping onions then it won’t make you tear up. I was cutting pearl onions the other day while I was making apple beef stew and even though I was using one of those off brand Slap Chop things I was still gushing tears! Unfortunately I didn’t have any gum around though, or onion goggles.
I made this today and let me tell you my hubbys eyes and mine rolled in the back of our heads :) Thats how good this was! Thanks for sharing this is a new fav for sure!!
I love French onion soup but it’s hard to find a great recipe or a restuarant that really knows how to make it. This by far tops any restuarant and recipe I have ever tried! Amazing, thank you so much for sharing. This will be my new favorite soup to make on a crisp fall evening.
On a side note: I always have a ton of chicken broth and I found out I didn’t after I already started making the soup. I used half beef broth and half chicken broth and it was delish!!
Oh..regarding the onions. After 1 onion I couldn’t stand it anymore. I went and grabbed my son’s swimming goggles. Yes I looked like a dork, but I did not tear up once! hee hee
WOW! This is me and the HUBS very most favorite soup! I love all the ideas and tips on how else you to consume and present this. I love it! It’s supposed to be 50 this week (perfect soup weather)!!!
Thanks for sharing!
Sounds delicious. I use merlot instead of sherry. I just can’t get enough of this soup.
This soup was nothing short of spectacular. I am already planning to make it again. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe, and for the gorgeous photos.
I’m a late comer here, but I’m so glad to find this post about carmelizing onions for my favorite, French Onion Soup! Thanks for sharing the rcipe! My tip about slicing onions without tears is to do it under the hood of my stove. The fan pulls the fumes away from me and there are no tears. I also love the slicing gadget. I have a similar one from Williams Sonoma that I use all the time!
The onion won’t make you tear up unless you cut the root end. That’s where the aroma that burns your eyes is stored. Also, I would LOVE to have the label you used. Is there a place to buy it or download it? Thanks so much for your wonderful blog!!!
[...] Recipe here [...]
Thanks for that, and for any readers that are having difficulty chopping onions without the tears, here’s an incredibly easy tip – put them in the fridge for a few hours, then chop them straight away after taking them out! No more tears! I found some more onion soup recipes here if anyone wants to try some more variations.
Stumbled upon this yesterday & made it.
For a college kid (who can’t really cook) on a budget, I LOVED it!
Perfect for fall :)
Do you think I could make now and can these for Christmas gifts? Your site says they keep in the fridge, but it’d be nice to have in the pantry… Thanks!! My local supermarket has onion .25/lb. I’m gonna go get 10 lbs today :D