There are few things more comforting than a real French onion soup - slowly cooked, caramelised onions that turn mellow and sweet in a broth laced with white wine and Cognac. The whole thing is finished off with crunchy baked croutons of crusty bread topped with melted, toasted cheese.....but this is FYF French Onion Soup so no brandy and no wine. Instead, we have beefy bovril cubes and a combination of Worcestershire and Soy sauce to make it as rich in flavour as any that you will get in a restaurant but at a fraction of the cost. I used a mixture of onions-some common or garden ones plus some shallots that I had left from another dish. I also used garlic butter on the bread before toasting the mixture of white and red mature cheddar cheese, adding another depth of flavour to this yummy soup. This is a great recipe that uses minimum ingredients but packs lots of taste and is very filling. It's easy to adapt it to suit you and your families tastes so why not give this a try and let us know how you got on in the comments below. We love to hear your feedback x
Prep:- Chop half the onion and grate the rest (optional)
Chop the garlic
Add the oil and butter to a pan on a low heat. Add the onions and fry gently for 20mns.
Add the brown sugar and stir through.
Allow the onions to caramelise and change from white to a golden brown
Add the flour.
Stir till the onions are coated.
Add the onions to the Slow cooker along with the Pepper, Herbs,Worcestershire, Soy sauce, Bay leaf, Garlic, stock cubes and water
Stir then place the lid on
Cook for 4hrs on low
The soup will change and deepen in colour as the flavours develop
Once cooked taste and adjust the seasoning. Add more water if required.
15 mns before serving Toast the bread on both sides then spread with garlic butter (optional), top with grated cheese and place back under the grill till cheese has melted.
Serve the soup hot with a generous topping of cheesy bread and a garnish of spring onions
This recipe can also be done on the stove. Just follow the steps above replacing the SC with a soup pot and simmer gently for 3-4 hrs.
Easy Swaps:-
Brown sugar for white.
Worcestershire /Soy sauce for White wine.
Bovril cubes for any strong beef cubes
Cheddar cheese for Gruyere or parmesan
Ingredients
Directions
Prep:- Chop half the onion and grate the rest (optional)
Chop the garlic
Add the oil and butter to a pan on a low heat. Add the onions and fry gently for 20mns.
Add the brown sugar and stir through.
Allow the onions to caramelise and change from white to a golden brown
Add the flour.
Stir till the onions are coated.
Add the onions to the Slow cooker along with the Pepper, Herbs,Worcestershire, Soy sauce, Bay leaf, Garlic, stock cubes and water
Stir then place the lid on
Cook for 4hrs on low
The soup will change and deepen in colour as the flavours develop
Once cooked taste and adjust the seasoning. Add more water if required.
15 mns before serving Toast the bread on both sides then spread with garlic butter (optional), top with grated cheese and place back under the grill till cheese has melted.
Serve the soup hot with a generous topping of cheesy bread and a garnish of spring onions
This recipe can also be done on the stove. Just follow the steps above replacing the SC with a soup pot and simmer gently for 3-4 hrs.
Easy Swaps:-
Brown sugar for white.
Worcestershire /Soy sauce for White wine.
Bovril cubes for any strong beef cubes
Cheddar cheese for Gruyere or parmesan
Love the look of this recipe.
Can you freeze left overs?
Yes. Eve x
I made this recipe a couple of days ago for a family lunch as I had a number of onions to use up. I really liked the rich flavour from the Worcester sauce and soy sauce. I will be using this recipe again in future, as everyone really enjoyed it.