French onion soup (French: ''soupe à l’oignon'' ) is a
soup
Soup is a primarily liquid food, generally served warm or hot (but may be cool or cold), that is made by combining ingredients of meat or vegetables with stock, milk, or water. Hot soups are additionally characterized by boiling solid ing ...
usually based on meat stock and
onion
An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion ...
s, and often served
gratinéed with
crouton
A crouton is a piece of rebaked bread, often cubed and seasoned. Croutons are used to add texture and flavor to salads—notably the Caesar salad— or eaten as a snack food.
Etymology
The word crouton is derived from the French ''croûton' ...
s or a larger piece of bread covered with
cheese
Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, ...
floating on top. Ancient in origin, the dish underwent a resurgence of popularity in the 1960s in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
due to a greater interest in
French cuisine
French cuisine () is the cooking traditions and practices from France. It has been influenced over the centuries by the many surrounding cultures of Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Belgium, in addition to the food traditions of the re ...
. French onion soup may be served as a meal in itself or as a
first course.
History
Onion soups have been popular at least as far back as
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
times. Throughout history, they were seen as food for poor people, as onions were plentiful and easy to grow. The modern version of this soup originates in Paris, France in the 18th century,
made from beef broth, and
caramelized
Caramelization is a process of browning of sugar used extensively in cooking for the resulting sweet nutty flavor and brown color. The brown colors are produced by three groups of polymers: caramelans (C24H36O18), caramelens (C36H50O25), and ca ...
onions.
It was introduced to the United States by the New York restaurant of
Henri Mouquin in 1861, where his wife Marie Julie Grandjean Mouquin was the chef. It is often finished by being placed under a
salamander
Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All ten ...
in a
ramekin
A ramekin (, ; also spelled ramequin) is a small dish used for culinary purposes.
Name
The term is derived from the French ', a cheese- or meat-based bowl baked in a small mould. The French term is in turn derived from early modern Dutch ', whi ...
with croutons and
Comté melted on top. The crouton on top is reminiscent of ancient soups (see
history of soup).
Preparation
![2021-03-26 Onion soup](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/2021-03-26_Onion_soup.jpg)
Recipes for onion soup vary greatly:
Though the liquid is usually meat stock, it may be simply water. Milk may be added. It may be thickened with eggs or flour. It may be gratinéed or not.Robert Courtine Robert Julien Courtine (16 May 1910 – 14 April 1998) was a French food writer who also wrote under the pen names "La Reynière" and "Savarin".
Background
Courtine was a member of the far-right Action française during the 1930s, and was close to ...
, Derek Coltman, trans. (1973) ''The Hundred Glories of French Cooking''. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. p. 18. [Marie Ébrard (1927) '']La bonne cuisine de Madame E. Saint-Ange
''La bonne cuisine de Madame E. Saint-Ange'' is a French cuisine, French cookbook written by Marie Ébrard under the name E. Saint-Ange and published in 1927 by Éditions Larousse, Larousse. A "classic text of French home cooking", it is a highly ...
'', Editions Chaix. p. 186.
Generally, recipes specify that the onions should be cooked slowly, becoming
caramelized
Caramelization is a process of browning of sugar used extensively in cooking for the resulting sweet nutty flavor and brown color. The brown colors are produced by three groups of polymers: caramelans (C24H36O18), caramelens (C36H50O25), and ca ...
.
Brandy
Brandy is a liquor produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured with ...
,
sherry
Sherry ( es, jerez ) is a fortified wine made from white grapes that are grown near the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is produced in a variety of styles made primarily from the Palomino grape, ranging from light versi ...
, or
white wine
White wine is a wine that is Fermentation in winemaking, fermented without skin contact. The wine color, colour can be straw-yellow, yellow-green, or yellow-gold. It is produced by the alcoholic fermentation of the non-coloured Juice vesicles, ...
is added at the end to deglaze. The soup base is often topped with slices of (toasted) bread (a "croute" or "crouton").
For the gratinéed version, the croute is topped with cheese and broiled or baked. The soup is then immediately served in the bowl or ramekin in which it was broiled (grilled), baked, or—in family-style—immediately transferred to individual serving bowls via a ladle.
In commerce
Commercial
dehydrated
In physiology, dehydration is a lack of total body water, with an accompanying disruption of metabolic processes. It occurs when free water loss exceeds free water intake, usually due to exercise, disease, or high environmental temperature. Mil ...
onion soup is widely available, and is the key ingredient in
French onion dip
French onion dip or California dip is an American dip typically made with a base of sour cream and flavored with minced onion, and usually served with potato chips as chips and dip. It is also served with snack crackers and crudités. It is not ...
.
Alternative names
Some alternative names for the soup include:
*Soupe à l'oignon à la Parisienne
*Gratinée Parisienne
*Gratinée des Halles
*Gratinée Lyonnaise
*Soupe à l'oignon Lyonnaise
*Soupe à l'oignon Gratinée
See also
*
French cuisine
French cuisine () is the cooking traditions and practices from France. It has been influenced over the centuries by the many surrounding cultures of Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Belgium, in addition to the food traditions of the re ...
*
French onion dip
French onion dip or California dip is an American dip typically made with a base of sour cream and flavored with minced onion, and usually served with potato chips as chips and dip. It is also served with snack crackers and crudités. It is not ...
*
List of French soups and stews
This is a list of French soups and stews. French cuisine consists of cooking traditions and practices from France, famous for rich tastes and subtle nuances with a long and rich history.
French soups and stews
* Bisque
*Bouillabaisse – a stew ...
*
List of onion dishes
This list consists of notable dishes and foods in which onion is used as a primary ingredient. Onions are widely used in cooking. They are very versatile and can be baked, boiled, braised, grilled, fried, roasted, sautéed or eaten raw.
Onion ...
*
List of soups
This is a list of notable soups. Soups have been made since Ancient history, ancient times.
Some soups are served with large chunks of meat or vegetables left in the liquid, while others are served as a broth. A broth is a flavored liquid usua ...
*
List of vegetable soups
This is a list of vegetable soups. Vegetable soup is a common soup prepared using vegetables and leaf vegetables as primary ingredients.
Vegetable soups
* Atama soup – a vegetable and palm nut soup that originates in South Nigeria.
*
*
...
*
Onion sauce
Onion sauce is a culinary sauce that uses onion as its primary ingredient. Some onion sauces may use several types of onions in their preparation. Some onion sauces are brown in color, while others are white.
Many various ingredients may be use ...
*
Sop
A sop is a piece of bread or toast that is drenched in liquid and then eaten. In medieval cuisine, sops were very common; they were served with broth, soup, or wine and then picked apart into smaller pieces to soak in the liquid. At elaborate ...
*
Vegetable soup
Vegetable soup is a common soup prepared using vegetables and leaf vegetables as primary ingredients. It dates to ancient history, and is a mass-produced food product in contemporary times.
Overview
Vegetable soup is prepared using vegetables, ...
References
External links
*
{{Soups
French soups
Onion-based foods
Ancient dishes
Vegetable soups