French Onion Soup

          

           
            French onion soup is a very common soup in the French town that I live in. The classic French onion soup is made with beef broth. If not for beef, we can try chicken broth or vegetable broth.

          Another important part of the French onion soup is the slice of baguette (bread) loaded with cheese, toasted and served on top of the soup. Instead, I tried the Shrimp toast (my previous post) for the topping and it tasted good.

          My French onion soup recipe is a simplified and easy to make version of the classic French onion soup.

French Onion Soup

Serves : 4

Ingredients

Onion - 4 medium

Beef / Chicken / Vegetable broth - 400 ml

Garlic - 5-6 cloves

Bay leaf - 1

Cinnamon - 1" piece

Pepper to taste

Salt to taste

Butter / Ghee / Oil - 1 tsp

Corn flour - 2 tsp (optional)

Prawns / Shrimp toast slices - 4 (my previous post:Shrimp Toast)

Preparation Method

1. Finely chop garlic.

2. Slice the onions lengthwise.

3. Prepare beef / chicken / veg broth by cooking it with the required water, salt and pepper.

4. In a pan, heat butter / ghee / oil and add the bay leaf and cinnamon.

5. Then add the garlic and sauté till a nice aroma comes. See to that garlic doesn't turn brown and a burnt smell comes.

6. Then add the onions, sauté it just for 2 minutes till it turn translucent. Then add pepper and salt. Then add 2 cups of water and cook the onions in low flame till it becomes tender. This will take about 10 minutes.

7. Then add the broth. Bring it to a boil. Check for seasoning and add pepper and salt accordingly.

8. This step is optional. If you like your soup to be a little thick, mix 2 teaspoons of corn flour with little water and mix into the soup, stir continuously. Corn flour will cook and thicken up in 2 minutes.

9. Serve hot or warm with the prawns toast on top.

Notes

• Top with prawns toast just before serving, otherwise the toast will suck the soup and become soggy.

• There is a difference between stock and broth. When the meat part of the beef / chicken is used then it is called broth. When the bones of the beef or chicken is used then it is called stock.