Smoked French Onion Soup
This recipe is so good it will make you cry twice! First when you are chopping the onions and then again when you get a bite of the hot, sticky, gooey ooey cheese and bread with the delectable soup! French onion soup is one of my favorite meals. I love it because it can basically be made with kitchen scraps and yet it’s widely considered to be gourmet. The way the onions release their natural sugars with a little bit of help from the seasonings we are going to add makes this dish absolutely wonderful for a cold winter day.
Equipment
- Competition Blend Wood Pellets
- Louisiana Grills 800 Premier
- BBQ Gloves
- You Need a BBQ Cutting Board
- Yonedas Okami Chef Knife
- Pit Boss Cast Iron Dutch Oven
- Goggles optional
Ingredients
- 8 each Medium White Onions
- 2 litres Beef Stock
- ¼ cup Yonedas Gold Seasoning
- 2 each Bay Leaves
- 1.5 cups Grated Gruyere Cheese
- 3 tbsp Olive Oil
- ½ cup Red Wine
- 2 cups Croutons or Crusty French Bread
- 2 tbsp Butter
- 2 each Garlic Cloves
- 1 tbsp White Sugar
Instructions
Preparation
- For this next step we recommend wearing onion goggles or at the least putting a wet paper towel on the corner of your cutting board. This will do a little to protect your eyes from watering as you slice the onions, also use a very sharp knife as this will help to prevent the onions from spraying their juices all over the kitchen, which is what makes you cry when slicing onions. Peel and slice all the onions and then get them into a frying pan on medium heat with about 4 tablespoons of water. The water will help to get the onions to start releasing some of their moisture to speed up the caramelization process. Try dicing or full rings as well!
Caramelizing the onions
- Once the water has evaporated, add in the olive oil and butter and stir the onions frequently until they start to soften and turn brown. As the onions begin to turn brown add in the garlic, Yonedas gold seasoning and the sugar to help season the onions and speed up the caramelization. Continue stirring until the onions are nice and brown all over.
Deglazing the pan
- Deglazing the pan is probably my favorite part of making French onion soup. Watching the onions start to stick to the edges of the pan really stresses me out, not knowing if they are going to burn a little. Knowing that the longer you let them stick to the pan, the deeper the color and flavor you are developing can be daunting. But now it’s time to pour in the wine and release all those flavors. Stir until the wine has reduced by about half and then add in the beef stock and bay leaves and let simmer for about 20 minutes.
Time to smoke it!
- Get your smoker ready by preheating it to about 400 degrees. Get some oven safe bowls ready by putting a piece of French bread or the croutons into the bottom of the bowl and then ladle the soup over top of the bread. Once the soup is in the bowl, top it with a handful of the grated cheese and place on the smoker to melt. Once the cheese is melted and starting to turn brown you can remove it from the smoker and serve hot. Be sure not to touch the bowl as it will be extremely hot.
Step by Step
- Slice your onions into thin strips
- Caramelize the onions in a frying pan with olive oil and butter
- Once the onions start to brown, add in the garlic and sugar
- Deglaze the pan with red wine and then add the beef stock
- Add in the bay leaves and let simmer for 20 minutes
- Place bread into oven safe bowls and ladle soup over top
- Cover with cheese and place on the smoker for about 15 minutes
- Serve hot!
0 Comments