I have it on authority, that is to say from a friend of a friend's sister whose lover is a French chef, that to make a good onion soup you should never use bouillon cubes and you should always carmelize the onions.
I take that to mean that you should make your own beef stock bouillon, but being the lazy cook that I am, I skip using bouillon altogether. The resulting soup is tasty and easy to make, although it would most likely never win a French Onion Soup Cook-Off if ever there were to be one. I also skip adding flour as a thickening agent and never add herbs, and I usually drink the red wine rather than add it to the broth.
All you have to do is
- Sautée until translucent a generous quantity of sliced yellow onions in butter and olive oil.
- Add one teaspoon each of sugar and salt and continue cooking until onions are browned.
- Add water to just cover the onions and let simmer over low heat about 30 minutes.
- Season to taste. Pour hot soup into oven-proof bowls and top with toasted croûtons and grated gruyère or Swiss cheese (see how to prepare croûtons on earlier blog post, Breadboard Economy).
- Place under broiler til cheese is crusty and bubbly.
- Finish with a grinding of fresh black pepper.
N.B: This recipe is particularly interesting if you're serving a person afflicted with gout who wants to avoid purines in the meat-based broths.
http://a-french-education.blogspot.com/2009/09/breadboard-economy-by-pb-lecron.html
Expressions: Ce n'est pas tes oignons. (familiar): It's none of your business.
Occupe-toi de tes oignons. (familiar): Mind your own business.
For jazz listening fun: Les Oignons with Sidney Bechet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNIBkE1ekF8
Text & photo © 2010 P.B.Lecron
