French onion soup

Hi all
We are great lovers of soup in our family, the most popular being lentil and secondly leek and potato.
Jenni, your soup maker sounds good, maybe I will invest in one after Covid, just wondered if you need to blend it after cooking?
Thank you if you have a chance to reply.

Could you not do that please Gardenersdelight I can both smell and almost taste beautiful onions!

Really though, slow cooking has always been a British way of cooking and it does bring the flavours out an tenderise beautifully.

I made onion soup last week and caramelised mine in the slow cooker, took about 6 hours but very low maintenance! Just sliced onions and some oil and stirring occasionally

Milliedog

PippaZ
I can't eat onions either (severe IBS and dietician has put me on the FODMAP diet). I use asafoetida powder instead of onions in casseroles etc (fry a pinch of it for a minute or so before adding other ingredients). It gives a little onion flavour.

Oh Milliedog we can exchange recipes I have been on the low FODMAP regime for a few years now. I have not felt so well for years so it's worth it but it is such a learning curve. I'm not keen on asafoetida but I haven't tried frying it first so must do that.

Strange things have become my favourite's. I make a Spanish Orange cake and freeze it in portions and then make another when I am running low - I am never without it and one portion a day keeps the orange under the portion size of half a small orange. It's biggest "thing" though is that it's a cake anyone can eat. Have you found Becky Excell? She would call it a "muggles cake". It has meant, when we could, I could offer it happily to other people.

(Becky Excell does a lot of gluten free and low fodmap recipes. She has a group on FB).

I don't suppose it would manage the gruyere toasts either!

When the pressure cooker has made the soup I ladle a small amount into a baking tin, place the toasts on top and grill them. They soak up the soup underneath and can then be popped back on top of the soup when it's served.

Unfortunately it has to be low fat cheddar at the moment.

Cursed Lockdown weight!!

Oh this thread is SO delicious - it's made me NEED this soup and the cheese toasty things!

PippaZ
I can't eat onions either (severe IBS and dietician has put me on the FODMAP diet). I use asafoetida powder instead of onions in casseroles etc (fry a pinch of it for a minute or so before adding other ingredients). It gives a little onion flavour.

4allweknow

Just on an onion note, what can I do with 3 kilos of red onions? But of a mix up with click and collect order. Did have 4 kilo but managed to offload one on my neighbour.

Nigella slices raw red onions thinly and steeps in vinegar then uses as an accompaniment to other dishes. We used to slice cucumber with the onion too, or red cabbage.

My electric pressure cooker makes lovely French onion soup so I'm sure a soup maker would be just as good.

What a brilliant thread more of this please.
I made a soup last week with frozen onions, ready prepared diced carrots and swede (came as a substitution for fresh parsnips in my online shopping) diced cooked chicken breast. diced pancetta (two packs in sleeve, used both) chicken stock, squeeze of umami paste, good sprinkle of all purpose seasoning, diced potatoes and two chicken stock cubes. I sent a couple of portions to my son who texted me back to say "Mum you are a great cook, that soup was outstanding". I love trying new soup flavours and will be experimenting with the french onion, I have some cheap brandy left over from the brandy butter ingredients at Christmas.

Just on an onion note, what can I do with 3 kilos of red onions? But of a mix up with click and collect order. Did have 4 kilo but managed to offload one on my neighbour.

One of the nicest soups I ever had was Sorrel Soup but I haven't seen sorrel for sale anywhere (and I don't have room to grow it). Has anyone seen it in their local green grocers or veg aisle? It seems like now is the time to spend on these things.

I make French onion soup and after spending the whole morning preparing it I have resorted to using frozen onions. It speeds up the process and the results are just as good. Bon appetite.

I use red wine and brandy in mine two other recipes to look up. Rick Stein Spanish garlic soup and River Cottage Bull-shot both delicious.

Am not a fan of French Onion soup. Maybe because as a young newlywed I tramped the streets (we did this in those bygone days) to find my DH a special dress shirt to wear with his Territorial Army uniform only to have this Austin Reed beauty ruined by him spilling said soup on the front. I even sent it for specialist cleaning too.
Having read the recipes here though I may give it a try again.

Great thread! I have all the ingredients to hand and am suffering with a toothache so French onion soup sounds like the perfect plan for my day!!

Being disabled I find some things a bit difficult, plus I really do not enjoy cooking. Last Sept I got myself a soup maker, not an all singing all dancing one that costs a fortune, just one that makes soup or smoothies. Best thing I have got in a long time. Put ingredients in, switch on and 20 mins later a lovely pot of hot soup, enough for me for lunch for several days (or freeze in zip lock bags for later use).
To make things easier I buy frozen diced onion, frozen mashed potato (thickens the soup). Kn--r stock pots, so easy, no standing stirring or pot watching. Highly recommended

Thank you for the recipes. I'll add the ingredients to my 'click and collect' order.

Interestingly my old Cordon Bleu text book does not have any alcohol in the recipe. I think that must be in the "adjust the seasoning" bit. It is a very old book. It suggests a mixture of grated Parmesan and Gruyere.

Love onion soup (no sugar added).

I wonder if the type of onions makes a difference. I once used some monster ones I'd bought from a farmers' market. It was really sweet, almost too sweet. Same recipe I always use.

Making leek and potato this afternoon. Another favourite.

I start mine off with just half a teaspoon of sugar to eight flipping onions. I add sherry not white wine.

Our kitchen and utility room are quite clean now as I daren't go too far!!

I also made pea soup which took about 20 minutes!

And, to add insult to injury, we try to support a girl in the village who makes a different soup each week - this week is French Onion.

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This one I found tasted richer........ cognac as well as wine!! It's John Burton Race.

Rick Stein has a good one in French Odyssey but he adds sugar.

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This one is easy enough

Any chance of a recipe please? I know I can look one up but a proven one would be good.