French Onion Soup 🧅🥖🧀

This soup, originally from France, is a classic example of a poor man's dish becoming a classic. Onions are plain on their own, but once caramelized, their sweetness is fully released. Combined with beef or chicken broth, the flavor becomes rich and aromatic. Finally, add cheese and French bread, and it's more than just a soup; it's a complete meal.

🛒 Ingredients (about 4 servings)

• Onion🧅: 4-5 (shredded, yellow onion is recommended, as it tastes sweeter when fried)
• Butter: 30g
• Olive oil: 1 tablespoon
• Garlic🧄: 2 cloves (chopped)
• Liquor🍷: 100ml (optional, to increase aroma)
• Beef broth or chicken broth: 1 liter
• Bay leaf: 1 piece
• Thyme: a little (dried or fresh)
• Salt: appropriate amount
• Crushed black pepper: appropriate amount
• French bread: several slices (cut into thick slices)
• Cheese: As needed (Gruyère cheese, Mozzarella/Parmesan are both recommended)

👩🏻🍳 Detailed cooking process

1. Processing onions

• Peel the onion and cut into thin strips.
• It is recommended to use yellow onions for a sweeter flavor. If you want a stronger flavor, you can mix white and red onions.

2. Slow-fry onions (the key step)

• Place a large pot on medium-low heat and add olive oil and butter.
• Add the shredded onion and fry slowly. It will start to release water in the first 10 minutes. Continue frying until it gradually turns golden brown.
• Be patient throughout the process and fry for 20-30 minutes, until the onions are caramelized, turn dark brown in color, and taste sweet.
• Add garlic and sauté until fragrant.

3. Add liquid

• After the onions are fried until golden brown, you can pour in white wine and scrape up the burnt aroma from the bottom of the pan to make the flavor richer.
• Add beef stock/chicken broth, bay leaves and thyme.
• Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes until the flavors blend.

4. Seasoning

• Season with salt and black pepper.
• If you want it to be richer, you can add a little more butter or a teaspoon of sugar to make the onion flavor more prominent.

5. Prepare French bread

• Slice the baguette and bake in an oven at 200°C for 5 minutes, until the surface is slightly crispy.
• You can apply a little garlic butter first to make it more fragrant.

6. Combine and bake

• Ladle hot soup into heatproof bowls.
• Place toasted French bread slices on top and top with cheese.
• Bake in the oven (Grill mode) for 5-8 minutes, until the cheese is melted and golden brown.

7. Finish serving

• Be careful when serving it as the bowl will be very hot.
• The first bite is the sweet onion soup, followed by the crispy bun and shredded cheese. It is really satisfying.

🌟 Editor's Tips

• Frying onions for a long time takes real skill : Don't be impatient, and fry them slowly until they are caramelized. This is the key to success.
• Cheese selection : Gruyère is the most authentic, Mozzarella has a good stringy effect, and Parmesan has a salty and fragrant taste, and can be mixed.
• Lazy version : If you don’t have time to stir-fry, you can toast the onions in the oven first to shorten the cooking time.
• Healthy version : Use less butter and more olive oil for a lighter taste.
• Hong Kong-style editor's suggestion : If you think it's too Western, you can reduce the amount of cheese so that the drink is not so greasy. You can also pair it with Hong Kong-style garlic buns 🥖.