A French recipe, with a New Zealand twist, to celebrate Bastille Day this Saturday 14th July. The origin of onion soup is believed to come from King Louis XV, returning late one night to his hunting lodge and all that was on hand to eat was onion, butter and champagne, he then mixed everything together and created the first french onion soup!
Serves 6
For French Onion Soup, you will need:
4 large onions,peeled and finely sliced
2 tbsp rice bran oil
25 gram butter
1 tbsp flour
100ml white wine (or champagne!)
800ml beef stock, water or vegetable stock can be used for vegetarian option
salt and pepper to taste
French stick sliced (1cm thick), rubbed with garlic cloves and olive oil, then toasted in oven
gruyere cheese, preferably, but tasty cheese does the trick too.
How to make French Onion Soup:
In a large pot put oil and butter to heat, add sliced onion and cook slowly until caramelised brown, not burned!! It will take about 10-15 min at least.
Add the tbsp of flour, stir in then deglazed with the wine, reduce,then add beef stock, bring to the boil and cook slowly, stirring occasionally, for about 30-45min, the longer the better for my opinion.
When ready, pour in individual bowls, season generously, then cover the soup with croutons, then sprinkle chopped spring onions and cheese on top.
A superb way to serve French Onion Soup is to have the entire top of the bowl covered with cheese, then place under grill and melt cheese until golden brown, then serve. Be careful as the soup is really hot.
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