Le Chef's French Onion Soup Gratinée

I Love EVERYTHING about French Onion Soup Gratinée. The rich, comforting broth. The ooey-gooey cheese pull. The bits of crispy cheese that stick to the edge of the bowl (you know you eat those too!). I also love the warm conviviality of the dish. It is impossible not to laugh and make mmmmm sounds as you eat French Onion Soup Gratinée. You can't take yourself too seriously as you are in ecstacy over gobs of cheese. There is a moment of shared experience that brings people closer when you enjoy it with friends and family.

The weather has been so cold this week, I thought it was time to revisit a family favorite for week 4 of the Soup Sunday Challenge. We are making one pot of soup per week. You can join at anytime by clicking the button below and I will send you my Soup Sunday Challenge Recipe Ebook that includes my top 10 French Soup Recipes in a printable PDF.

Le Chef's French Onion Soup Gratinée is the perfect dish to share as winter drags on. Turn a chilly winter night into an Alpine getaway in your own home.

We recently invited our dear friends for an après ski style dinner- on our back patio. Yes, the weather was about 40 degrees and it was black as night at 6pm, but as we tucked into our individual portions of Le Chef's French Onion Soup Gratinée, no one was feeling a chill.

We have made French Onion Soup Gratinée in our house many times over the years, but this was the first time that I perched myself in the kitchen, with a glass of Beaujolais in hand, of course, and took notes as my husband (a French Chef) cooked from memory.

I am so happy to share with you Le Chef's French Onion Soup Gratinée recipe. I hope that it will bring you much joy this winter.

"I have eaten many French Onion Soups over the years, including in Paris at top restaurants. This was the best I have ever had the pleasure of tasting"

Caet Young, blog reader

Le Chef's French Onion Soup Gratinée Recipe

Yield: 8 portions of 6-8 oz

Equipment required:

A thick bottomed dutch oven is my preferred pot (you can stick the entire pot in the oven to melt the cheese if serving family style). My favorites are from Le Creuset or Staub.

French Onion Soup crocks. I like the traditional lion head bowls like you find in a French Bistro these but also a hearty handled version would be practical too. These white handled bowls would be easier to handle and are so cute.

If you are lucky to find the French Mercantile Lion Head Bowls in stock - they are great at 12oz.

Stainless Steel Sizzling Platters are so much easier to handle than a cookie sheet when making French Onion Soup Gratinée. You can fit 2 Soup Crocks at a time and the platters don't bend or warp like a cookie sheet can. A warped cookie sheet can be very dangerous when you have 6 bowls of steaming Onion Soup on it! I use my sizzling platters for everything from finishing a steak in the oven to making grilled cheese to reheating a croissant.

Le Chef's French Onion Soup Gratinée Recipe

Soup Ingredients:

• 8 Onions, sliced (we like to use 3 yellow onions, 3 white onions and 2 red onions for depth of flavor)
• 2tbsp olive oil
• 6 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 5 sprigs of thyme (leaves only - if using dried thyme, use 2 teaspoons)
• 8 oz of butter - (Yes, this seems like a lot and yes, you can half it if you are being careful, but try it, it is the difference between homemade French Onion Soup and restaurant French Onion Soup - I promise!)
• ½ cup of whiskey (once we did not have whiskey and used Gin instead -it was also delicious!)
• 8 cups chicken stock (this produces a lighter flavored French onion soup where you can really taste the onions)

For the Gratinée:

16 slices of day old french baguette, ¼ inch thick.

15 oz of Gruyere

10 oz of Appenzeller Cheese

French Onion Soup Gratinée instructions:

Heat olive oil over medium high heat in the pot.

Add in sliced onions and garlic, stirring frequently until beginning to brown.

Add butter and bring heat to medium. Stir frequently as butter melts and onions caramelize for 20 minutes. It is key that the onions are well cooked and have a nice golden color.

Deglaze the pot with the whiskey and add the bay leaf and thyme. The steam will smell sooooo good!

Add in 8 cups of chicken stock, stir and cover. Allow to simmer for 30 minutes. Turn off the heat, remove the bay leaf and add an extra splash of whiskey for good measure.

For the Gratinée:

Cut the cheeses into ⅛ inch thick slices.

For individual portions ladle the hot soup into the French Onion Soup Crocks until they are almost full. Allow enough space at the top for the bread to be flush with the top of the bowl. Place 2 slices of baguette over each crock so that the bread fully covers the top (you may need to break up the pieces to do this). Arrange slices of cheese over the top so that the cheese fully covers the bread and also hangs a bit over the sides. For a truly decadent cheese pull, double up on the cheese - you won't regret it.

Set the soup crocks on a cookie sheet to catch excess spilling.

Place cookie sheet with the prepared soup crocks under the broiler. Watch VERY closely and allow to brown until the cheese is bubbly on top and beautifully golden.

Serve immediately being careful not to burn yourself.

Bon Appétit.

Let me know if you try this recipe. I would love to hear how you served it!

About Le Chef's Wife

Bonjour! I am Anina Belle. I translate the fancy cooking of my Michelin-star trained French Chef Husband, Le Chef, into easy to make dishes that busy people with no culinary training (like me!) can make at home. We have two young kids (5 and 2) and I have a full time job in hospitality in addition to this blog. I strongly believe that even busy people deserve to eat well at home.

I share our home cooking on Instagram, pinterest and tiktok. Sign up for my newsletter to be the first to receive my new recipes and have advance access to cooking classes. I look forward to cooking with you!

Au plaisir,

Le Chef's Wife

Le Chef's French Onion Soup Gratinée

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 5 reviews

• Author: Anina Belle Gianini
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 50 minutes
• Total Time: 60 minutes
• Yield: 6 portions 1x
• Category: soups, french onion soup
• Cuisine: French

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Description

I Love EVERYTHING about Le Chef's French Onion Soup Gratinée. The rich, comforting broth. The ooey-gooey cheese pull. The dash of whiskey. A perfect meal to serve for socially distanced dinners outside in the winter.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Soup Ingredients:

• 8 Onions, thinley sliced (we like to use 3 yellow onions, 3 white onions and 2 red onions for depth of flavor)
• 2tbsp olive oil
• 6 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
• 1 bay leaf
• 5 sprigs of thyme (leaves only - if using dried thyme, use 2 teaspoons)
• 1 stick of butter
• ½ cup of whiskey (once we did not have whiskey and used Gin instead -it was also delicious! White wine also works but you don't get the same zing!)
• 8 cups chicken stock

For the Gratinée:

16 slices of day old french baguette, ¼ inch thick.

15 oz of Gruyere

10 oz of Appenzeller Cheese

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

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Instructions

Heat olive oil over medium high heat in the pot.

Add in sliced onions and garlic, stirring frequently until beginning to brown.

Add butter and bring heat to medium. Stir frequently as butter melts and onions caramelize for 20 minutes. It is key that the onions are well cooked and have a nice golden color.

Deglaze the pot with the whiskey and add the bay leaf and thyme. The steam will smell sooooo good!

Add in 8 cups of chicken stock, stir and cover. Allow to simmer for 30 minutes. Turn off the heat, remove the bay leaf and add an extra splash of whiskey for good measure.

For the Gratinée:

Cut the cheeses into ⅛ inch thick slices.

For individual portions ladle the hot soup into the French Onion Soup Crocks until they are almost full. Allow enough space at the top for the bread to be flush with the top of the bowl. Place 2 slices of baguette over each crock so that the bread fully covers the top (you may need to break up the pieces to do this). Arrange slices of cheese over the top so that the cheese fully covers the bread and also hangs a bit over the sides. For a truly decadent cheese pull, double up on the cheese - you won't regret it.

Set the soup crocks on a cookie sheet to catch excess spilling.

Place cookie sheet with the prepared soup crocks under the broiler. Watch VERY closely and allow to brown until the cheese is bubbly on top and beautifully golden.

Serve immediately. Bon Appétit.

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