French 75’s Onion Soup
- Mar 26, 2020
- David Wilhelm
French 75’s Onion Soup
Ingredients
- ¼ cup Olive oil, bacon or duck fat
- 6 each Large onions (resulting in 3 pounds after trimming and dicing if you have a scale)
- 1 TBS Kosher salt
- 1 tsp Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 TBS Sugar
- 1 TBS Dried Thyme (sub 3 TBS fresh if you have it)
- ¾ cup Sweet or medium sherry
- 6 cups Canned beef stock (if you don’t have beef stock you can substitute chicken stock)
- as needed Toasted sliced tale bread
- As needed Gruyere cheese, sliced 1/8” thick
Procedure
If you have a large enameled cast iron pot it is perfect for making this soup. Heat the oil over medium-high heat. (I know most of you would not have duck fat in your pantry or freezer but order some on Amazon and see how much it livens up the flavor when substituting for olive oil)
STEP 1
Add onions and sauté stirring frequently for 10 minutes. Add salt, pepper and thyme. Continue to cook.
STEP 2
This part of the soup is the only critical part in that you have to pay close attention and stir frequently so the onions do not burn and become bitter. Any burnt ones should be removed.
STEP 3
Once they start to brown add the sugar and continue to cook until they become golden brown. Add the sherry and reduce by half. Next add the beef stock and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes over low heat. Adjust the seasonings as needed to your personal taste.
STEP 4
Ladle the soup into a oven proof cup or bowl. Next you will need to top the soup with a slice of toasted bread. If you have store bought croutons you can use these as well as you are using them just to suspend the cheese on top of the soup as it is melted. I have always used Gruyere cheese because of it’s strong, nutty, rich flavor when melted but, in absence of this you can use Swiss, Provolone, Fontina or any other semi-soft melting cheese.
STEP 5
Layer 4-5 slices on the top of the cup overlapping around the outside. Place the soup under a broiler until it browns and bubbles, anywhere from 5-10 minutes depending upon the strength of your broiler.
Enjoy but eat with caution as it will be hot!
