The BEST French Onion Soup Recipe (2024)

As an Amazon Associate and affiliate with other networks, I may earn a commission from purchases made through links within this post. For more information read my disclosure pagehere.

If you are looking for the BEST French Onion Soup Recipe then you are going to fall in love at first bite with this delicious french onion soup! Not to toot my own horn here, but this seriously is the Best French Onion Soup Recipe ever!

French Onion Soup Recipe

You may be wondering how I have gotten this french onion soup recipe to be perfect. Well, I had been working on perfecting it for a long time because this soup has a special meaning to me.

I remember being a little kid and getting to go out to a nice restaurant with my parents. Every time we went out I had french onion soup. I thought it was just so fancy back then and I still do! It is one of those soups that can really make a meal and really make a person feel fancy even if they are just enjoying it at home and not in a restaurant. Thisrecipe for french onion soup reminds me of going to the fancy restaurants with my parents when I was a child.

It seems like a french onion soup Recipe would be a hard one to make but it is quite simple. It took me a bit of time to get it perfect and to have the perfect restaurant flavors that I love but I did it. I am so excited to share this recipe with you because it does have such a special meaning to me that brings back memories and because it is an AMAZING soup recipe!

Homemade Soup Recipes

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
Chicken Pot Pie Soup
Crockpot Veggie Soup
Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut Milk
Crockpot Stuffed Pepper Soup
Baked Potato Soup
Homemade Tomato Soup

This french onion soup tastes just like you are sitting in a fancy restaurant and even better it is a super easy french onion soup recipe! Of course this is an easy french onion soup recipe, we don’t ever like to make things complicated around here. 🙂 I am sure you are going to absolutely love this easy soup recipe! I am hoping that everyone who tries it feels fancy just like we do in my house when I make it.

What is French Onion Soup?

French onion soup is a beef broth based soup, with caramelized onions and spices that is served with a piece of bread placed in it and topped with cheese.

Is French Onion Soup Keto?

If you skip adding the bread to this soup recipe you will cut down a lot on the carbs making it a low carb french onion soup recipe that you can enjoy while sticking to keto or low carb. If you are wanting one that is made just for low carb, check out this amazing low carb french onion soup!

Best Cheese for French Onion Soup

If you are worried about french onion soup cheese there are a few options. Personally I love the taste of Gruyere cheese on french onion soup.

However if you can’t find it, you can use provolone cheese instead of the Gruyere Cheese when making this soup. It will still taste amazing, I promise!

What are the best onions to use for French Onion Soup?

The great thing about this soup recipe is that you do not have to be to picky with the onions that you use. You can use sweet onions, yellow onions or shallot onions. If you want to you can also use a combination of the 3.

How to Make French Onion Soup without wine

Making french onion soup recipe without wine is super easy to do, you will make just one small adjustment to this recipe and that is it. I know that not everyone likes to use alcohol in their cooking and that is ok, you can still make this amazing soup recipe and will have a french onion soup recipe without wine that the whole family will love.

The white wine in this recipe is not a big component of the soup’s flavor so you can easily change it out for a few different things that will still give you an amazing soup. Instead of using white wine use more beef broth or use some chicken stock. You can also use red wine in this recipe if you do not have any white cooking wine on hand.

How to Serve French Onion Soup

When eating this easy homemade soup I like to use a fancy soup bowl or Ramekin to put my soup in. You can use a regular soup bowl. But again, we like to be fancy in our house when we have this soup, so we stick to using our ramekins.

What to Serve with Soup

For lunch you can do soup with a sandwich like Red Pepper and mushroom grilled cheese or chicken salad.

For dinner there are so many things you can serve with this soup, I honestly can not think of many things that do not pair well with this homemade onion soup recipe.

Sometimes we have this soup for dinner on its own, other times with a fresh homemade salad with garlic lime vinaigrette dressing, Avocado BLT Salad or Strawberry Spinach Salad.

Can French Onion soup be made ahead of time?

You can make this soup up to 3 days ahead of time. However do not put the bread and the cheese on top until you are ready to serve it.

You can also freeze french onion soup. Just let the soup cool completely and then freeze in an airtight container or a freezer zipper bag with out the bread and the cheese. Soup will keep frozen for up to 6 months.

French Onion Soup Ingredients

2 ounces olive oil
2 pounds onions
2 ounces white wine
2 quarts beef broth
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
5 ounces Gruyere Cheese
Salt
Pepper
4 Thick Slices Of French Bread Or Baguette

How to Make French Onion Soup

Thinly slice all of the onions.

Heat your soup pot on high on the stove. Once it is hot add the oil.

Once the oil starts to smoke add your onions. Cook the onions until they are wilted down and caramelized, about 20 minutes.Do not stir the onions for the first 4 minutes.

Deglazethe pot with the white wine. (this means just pour your wine in, for those who are not always masterminds in the kitchen)

Next add the beef broth, bay leaf, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper to the pot. Cook on medium heat for 30 minutes.

Turn the oven on to broil. Slice your bread if it is not presliced. Butter one side of the bread slices and broil over low heat on a baking sheet, allowing bread to brown and become crispy. Once done remove the bread from the oven.

Ladle the soup into your bowl or ramekin.

Place the crispy bread on top, and then sprinkle generously with grated cheese.

Broil in the oven until cheese is melted and bubbly.

French Onion Soup Recipe

Created by Lauren

4.24 from 51 votes

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 50 minutes mins

Total Time 55 minutes mins

Servings 4

Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate Recipe

ThisFrench Onion Soup Recipe is the perfect homemade french onion soup. This easy french onion soup recipe tastes just like you are eating at a fancy restaurant.

Ingredients

2 oz olive oil
2 pounds onions
2 oz white wine
2 quarts beef broth
2 bay leafs
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
5 ounces Gruyere Cheese Grated
salt to taste
pepper to taste
4 Thick Slices Of French Bread Or Baguette

Instructions

Thinly slice all of the onions. Heat your soup pot on high on the stove. Once it is hot add the oil.
Once the oil starts to smoke add your onions. Cook the onions until they are wilted down and caramelized, about 20 minutes.Do not stir the onions for the first 4 minutes.
Deglazethe pot with the white wine. (this means just pour your wine in, for those who are not always masterminds in the kitchen)
Next add the beef broth, bay leaf, italian seasoning, salt and pepper to the pot.
Cook the soup on medium heat for 30 minutes.
Turn the oven on to broil. Slice your bread if it is not presliced. Butter one side of the bread slices and broil over low heat on a baking sheet, allowing bread to brown and become crispy. Once done remove the bread from the oven.
Ladle the soup into your bowl or ramekin.
Place crispy bread on top, and then sprinkle generously with grated cheese.
Broil until cheese is melted and bubbly.

french onion soup, French Onion Soup Recipe

Dinner, Soup

Did you make this?

Make sure to follow MM on Instagram and Pinterest for more creative ideas!

3 SmartPoints per serving on Weight Watchers FreeStyle Plan for SOUP without cheese or bread

More Recipes you will love!

Parmesan Rice

Baked spaghetti

French Onion Dip

Join the newsletter

Subscribe to get our latest recipes right in your inbox every time we post a new one!

The BEST French Onion Soup Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you deepen the flavor of French onion soup? ›

My personal go-tos include worcestershire sauce, fish sauce, and brandy. Each deepens the flavor of french onion soup. Balsamic vinegar and soy sauce are other great options.

Discover More Details ›

What broth is French onion soup made of? ›

This soup traditionally is made with beef stock, though sometimes a good beef stock can be hard to come by and expensive to make. If you use boxed stock, taste it first! If you don't like the taste, don't use it. (If you cook a lot of beef or beef roasts, save the scraps and freeze them to make a stock with later.)

Read The Full Story ›

What is the difference between onion soup and French onion soup? ›

What is the Difference Between Onion Soup and French Onion Soup? French onion soup is always made with beef stock. Other onion soups can be made with chicken, vegetable, or beef stock. Additionally, French onion soup typically contains wine or sherry, which isn't typical or necessary in other onion soups.

View Details ›

Why do you put baking soda in French onion soup? ›

The caramelized onions for this soup cook more quickly due to a pinch of baking soda but still have that deep, slow-cooked flavor. Topping the soup with hot, cheesy toasts prepared while the soup simmers, eliminates the need to bake the soup in specialty French onion soup bowls.

See Details ›

Why do you add flour to French onion soup? ›

Onion soup, at its very essence, is nothing more than onions and water boiled together. Period, done, finished, everything added from that point on is pure opinion. Caramelizing the onions brings out sugars, and makes a more luxurious silky and sweet soup, adding flour gently thickens and provides body.

Find Out More ›

What cheese can I use instead of Gruyère in French onion soup? ›

Other Swiss types of cheese like Raclette cheese or Appenzeller Cheese or Dutch cheeses like Edam cheese or Gouda or Jarlsberg cheese from Norway or American Swiss cheese can all be substituted.

Read On ›

Does it matter how you cut onions for French onion soup? ›

For French onion soup, it is best to slice the onions into thin, even slices. This will allow them to cook evenly and caramelize properly. You can achieve this by cutting the onion in half, placing the flat side down, and slicing it widthwise into thin slices.

What wine is best for French onion soup? ›

I recommend a dry white or red wine, such as a good quality Pinot Grigio/Gris, Sauv Blanc, Sémillon, Chardonnay, Merlot or Pinot Noir. Generally, if you can't drink it, don't cook with it.

Read The Full Story ›

Can you use chicken broth instead of beef broth for French onion soup? ›

Caramelizing the onions slowly in butter until they're rich golden brown (but not so dark as to taste bitter) produces the sweetest, most flavorful results. If you don't have homemade beef stock, the recipe's suggested homemade or store-bought chicken stock substitutions are better than most store-bought beef stock.

Discover More Details ›

Why is French onion soup so good? ›

French onion soup is the ultimate comfort food. Onions get slowly cooked until sweet and caramelized, then simmered in rich broth until they're practically falling apart. To finish it off, toasted bread is added to give it that lovable crisp-gone-soggy texture and a generous amount of Gruyère cheese is melted on top.

Read The Full Story ›

Why is my French onion soup too sweet? ›

Onions are very sweet, especially when they're cooked down, and that is the main purpose of onion soup. The sweetness can be balanced by adding some dry wine or vinegar. Taste as you go and don't overdo it. A little salt will balance it too, but don't forget that the grated cheese you will top it with is salty.

Get More Info Here ›

What kind of onion is best for soup? ›

When you are sauteing onions to build flavor as a base for your dish (soup, tomato sauce, you name it), the yellow onion is your friend. That being said, white onions are a totally acceptable substitute for yellow, especially if you're cooking them.

Learn More ›

Should onions be caramelized for French onion soup? ›

The key to good French onion soup is to cook the onions so long that they threaten to melt into a viscous, dark brown paste, à la Marmite. As has already been extensively reported in Slate, there are no shortcuts when you're caramelizing onions; it always takes at least an hour, usually longer.

Explore More ›

Why is my French onion soup sour? ›

It might be because of the stock or that you used onions that has sour flavor such as white onions.

Discover More ›

Why do you put lemon juice in soup? ›

But as the publication explains, lemon juice adds more than just tartness. For chicken soup in particular, lemon juice balances out the more rich and savory flavors, adding an overall brightness to the taste.

Discover More ›

How do you doctor up canned French onion soup? ›

Infusing the soup with a richer taste is as easy as quickly sauteing crushed garlic before pouring the soup in. Some soft, buttery garlic sauteed in earthy olive oil is the perfect addition to enrich canned French onion soup.

Tell Me More ›

How do you make soup taste stronger? ›

Use fresh vegetables, high-quality meats or broth, and fresh herbs to add depth of flavor. Add acidity: A squeeze of lemon or lime juice, a dash of vinegar, or a splash of wine can brighten the flavors of a soup and make it taste more complex.

Learn More ›

What spices add depth to soup? ›

Herbs and sources add flavor, aroma, and intensity to the soup broth. You can pick fresh or dried herbs like basil for tomato-based soups or fresh parsley for clear broths. You may also add more spices like turmeric, ground ginger, ground paprika, or nutmeg for a touch of spice and color to your soup broth.

Get More Info ›