The Easiest Way To Elevate The Flavor Of Canned French Onion Soup (2024)
Elizabeth Okosun
·2 min read
For the days when you're too tired to cook but need something hearty, comfort food is just a grocery delivery and microwave away. Why whip out the pots and pans when there's ready-made food to do the work for you? Sure, canned French onion soup won't taste exactly like the real thing, but with a few tweaks, you can elevate this classic canned soup.
Caramelizing the onions for soup is a lengthy process. To elevate the canned version, quicklysaute fresh onions, instead. Cook the thinly sliced onions in butter until they start to soften and take on a golden brown color, which indicates their sweet taste. The process only takes a few minutes and infuses French onion soup with a rich, decadent taste. A sprinkle of gruyere or provolone on top melts into the soup perfectly, lending the dish a bold, nutty taste. Scoop everything up with some toasted slices of baguette and enjoy the simple, yet comforting dish.
Other Simple Tricks To Elevate Canned French Onion Soup
French onion is a canned soup you should always have in your pantry. Not only does it taste great on its own, but it's so easy to spruce up. With stock already being a main ingredient, you can up the meaty flavor by simmering the canned soup on the stovetop with extra beef stock. To push it even further, crush a bouillon cube and sprinkle in salt to taste.
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Bring a fresh, earthy flair to the canned soup by adding herbs as it cooks. Some fresh rosemary or thyme brings a woody, peppery taste to the soup, complementing the umami flavor of the beef stock. With a splash of balsamic vinegar and green onions or fresh basil as a garnish, the canned soup is transformed from a grocery store original into a gourmet dish. Infusing the soup with a richer taste is as easy as quickly sauteing crushed garlic before pouring the soup in. Some soft, buttery garlic sauteed in earthy olive oil is the perfect addition to enrich canned French onion soup.
Fresh or dried herbs can also help elevate your French onion soup, with bay leaves, sage, and thyme all being typical additions. You may also want to add a smidgen of salt if the soup is too bland or even some sugar to better simulate the caramelized quality that those canned onions probably lack.
To elevate the canned version, quickly saute fresh onions, instead. Cook the thinly sliced onions in butter until they start to soften and take on a golden brown color, which indicates their sweet taste. The process only takes a few minutes and infuses French onion soup with a rich, decadent taste.
Add the broth, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, and bay leaves to the pot. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook, covered, for about 30 minutes. Add the sherry, then taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. If the soup needs a deeper flavor, try a few shakes of Worcestershire sauce.
Umami is the fifth basic taste and can greatly enhance the flavor of any dish, including French onion soup. Consider these umami-rich ingredients to boost the taste: Add a splash of soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce to the soup. These condiments are packed with umami and will add depth and complexity to the flavors.
You can also go with more heat and spices. "Ground paprika, turmeric, nutmeg, ground ginger, and other powdered spices add a touch of color and spiciness to broths," she says. As a general rule, use fresh herbs at or near the end of cooking and dried herbs and spices early on.
What is the Difference Between Onion Soup and French Onion Soup? French onion soup is always made with beef stock. Other onion soups can be made with chicken, vegetable, or beef stock. Additionally, French onion soup typically contains wine or sherry, which isn't typical or necessary in other onion soups.
French onion soup is the ultimate comfort food. Onions get slowly cooked until sweet and caramelized, then simmered in rich broth until they're practically falling apart. To finish it off, toasted bread is added to give it that lovable crisp-gone-soggy texture and a generous amount of Gruyère cheese is melted on top.
Onions are another common foodstuff that can cause gas. Onions contain fructan, which is difficult for the small intestine to absorb. When these sugars pass into the large intestine, they come into contact with gut bacteria and ferment – causing gas as a byproduct.
Burned onions – result in bitter soup. Be careful to not burn the onions/cook them until they are too dark in color – you don't really need to cook them until they are dark brown – golden brown/light brown is enough.
If you don't have homemade beef stock, the recipe's suggested homemade or store-bought chicken stock substitutions are better than most store-bought beef stock. Asian fish sauce, cider vinegar, and sherry add depth and complexity to the broth.
Onion soup, at its very essence, is nothing more than onions and water boiled together. Period, done, finished, everything added from that point on is pure opinion. Caramelizing the onions brings out sugars, and makes a more luxurious silky and sweet soup, adding flour gently thickens and provides body.
You can thicken soup by adding flour, cornstarch, or another starchy substitute. For the best results, never add flour or cornstarch directly to your soup. If you do, it will clump up on top. Instead, ladle a small amount of broth into a separate bowl and let it cool.
A pinch of seasoning can make all the difference to freshen up the flavors in a ho-hum soup. Most canned soups have plenty of sodium, so skip the salt and stick with spices like cumin or curry powder or try dried herbs like basil or rosemary.
If the soup is too sweet, add some vinegar. If you would like a little more depth, add a splash of red wine. I like the onion-to-liquid ratio with 6 cups of water. But if you'd prefer a slightly more delicate soup, add an additional 1 cup/240 milliliters water or to taste.
Introduction: My name is Van Hayes, I am a thankful, friendly, smiling, calm, powerful, fine, enthusiastic person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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