Ultimate French Onion Soup
By now you all know that at Simply Scrumptious we love soups that has some action going on. Flavorsome with every spoonful and most importantly hearty. I have always wanted to make French Onion soup but I was hesitant about the fact that the soup itself is not very busy. I embarked on a mission to make the Ultimate French Onion Soup. French Onion soup traditionally consists of an onion and beef stock base that is served in ramekins, topped with a baguette croutons, and smothered in Gruyere Cheese. The soup achieves it’s full rich flavor from the combination of caramelized onions and beef. The caramelizing process of the onions is extremely important in making this soup because it is what draws out the onion’s natural sugars therefore creating a robust and succulent onion flavor. I was sold! The idea sounded very appealing and appetizing. I came up with the idea of adding some red potatoes, bite sized pieces of string beans, and best of all, beef stew cubes. As much as I wanted to pick up some Gruyere Cheese, I found it was a tad expensive. I opted to use Fontina Cheese instead which worked perfectly. The soup was not only delicious, but the infusion of these luscious ingredients created the Ultimate French Onion Soup.
Ultimate French Onion Soup
- 1lb beef stew cubes, cut into bite size pieces
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour for dredging
- 4 large onions, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 red potatoes with skin on, diced
- 1 cup string beans, diced
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 3 cups low-sodium beef broth
- 1 cup water
- 1 beef bouillon cube
- French Baguette
- 1/4 cup Fontina Cheese, shredded
Take the beef stew cubes and put them a bowl. Season with basil, rosemary, onion powder, and garlic powder
Dredge the beef with flour and use tongs to toss to evenly distribute the flour
Add some olive oil to a non-stick skillet pan and sear the beef cubes
The beef cubes should have a nice slightly browned crust on the outside
Meanwhile, pour the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, salt, and pepper then cook until the onions have softened for about 10 minutes
Add the red potatoes and string beans. Season with basil and rosemary. Cook for 10-15 minutes more until the veggies have softened
Toss the seared beef cubes into the onion-veggie mixture
Stir in the beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, water, and lastly add the bouillon cube. Bring to a boil. Once the soup has come to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for an hour. The soup will look like this after an hour. The veggies will be extremely soft and the beef will be tender, full of flavor, and juicy.
We currently do not have ramekins, but here’s a niffy little trick to melt the cheese onto the baguette. Sprinkle the Fontina cheese on top of the baguette and place them into a toaster oven
The cheese will quickly melt and the bread itself will be lightly toasted in no time. Once the cheese has melted, place the baguette slice on top of the soup
Bon Appetit!
oh wow fab soup love the addition of the beef
Wow, Jessie. I love the addition of beef in that soup. It’s really such a comfort food with more textures added to it. They look great.
I just had french onion soup for lunch today. It didn’t have the beef in it like yours. I wish it did. Your soup sounds more hearty than the one I had this morning!
Jessie, that soup looks delicious!
Caramelizing the onions and browning the meat well really gives the soup more flavor just like you did and I’m sure that tastes really, really good 
What a great, hearty version of this soup! The caramelized onions always add such good flavor.
I love the addition of beef. That is clever!
Yum Yum….so comforting…love this!
I love the caramelized onions in this soup, great flavour. The perfect comfort food:)
I like the photo of the onions with all the pepper, yum.
It’s so cold and rainy today that I’m so happy that you posted this recipe! I love soup too and this seems much richer with the beef…yum!
I love your take on French onion soup. This sounds so good and hearty, to make for a meal on its own. Great recipe and photos:)
Truly awesome soup..the caramelized onions more beef cubes make it elegant and delicious
Cheers!
Gera
It sounds perfect, my husband loves French Onion Soup and I haven’t made it for him at home yet, thanks for a wonderful recipe!
Wow, it’s the soup that eats like a meal for sure! LOL This sounds so good.
wow!! i love french onion soup!! now m craving already!! gonna try this tonight!
cheers!!
Nice day ahead! First thing in the morning, I saw something delectable! My ever favorite onion soup! Thanks!
With this colder weather rolling in–I’ve been on a soup kick!
Can’t wait to try this…French Onion is one of my favs!!
Love this version of French Onion Soup, cubed beef kicks it up for sure!
Yum! I love all of the additions you made to the soup, especially the beef. Great job!
oh no! i just read this before lunch and i fear you have waylaid my plans… must make onion soup
I adore French onion soup and love that you added beef. Your photos are beautiful!
What a delicious and beautiful soup! My favorite part of French onion soup is always the melted cheese on the bread… Soooo good…
Oh that was absolutely satisfying french onion soup! You are so generous in gradients!!! makes me really craving for beef!!
I like your blog – glad I finally click through that foodbuzz link!!!so glad to meet u here
hope to read more great recipes from you,Tou Tou
Oooh beef in French onion soup?! Yum! You should submit this recipe to Recipe4Living.com!
A satisfying soup indeed! French Onion Soup is one of my favorite cold weather dishes…the addition of beef and veggies would definitley make it “the ultimate”!
That looks fantastic! YUM!