15 Best Winter Soups #12
#12. Bistro French Onion Soup
Servings
8
Special Equipment
- Standard or Immersion Blender
- Fine-Mesh Strainer (Optional)
Ingredients
- 1½ l Beef Stock (or Veal or Chicken Broth)
- 250 ml Red Wine (or White Wine)
- 5 Yellow Onions (Big Ones)
- 2 Garlic Cloves (finely chopped)
- 2 tbsp flour (or unsweetened dark chocolate)
- 50 g butter
- 30 ml Brandy (optional)
- 2 tsp thyme (or two branches of fresh thyme)
- 1 bay leaf
- Salt and pepper to taste
Topping
- 4 slices of dry or toasted bread (thick)
- 150 g Gruyere or Comte Cheese (or Emmental)
Instructions
- Season the oxtail generously with salt and pepper.
- Heat the oil in a 28cm (11") frying pan or skillet over medium heat. Once hot, fry the oxtail until it gets a nice colour on all sides. Remove and place in a saucepan with a 3.5 litre (3 quart) capacity.
- Roughly chop the onion, carrot, and celery into 1-2cm (½-¾") dice.
- Add the chopped vegetables to the pan that was used to sear the oxtail and cook for 5 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan occasionally.
- Pour in the Worcestershire sauce and reduce to almost nothing, stirring occasionally.
- Pour in the red wine and reduce by half, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the tomato ketchup and then pour over the oxtail.
- Add the bay leaves, thyme, and peppercorns.
- Add the beef stock and bring to a simmer on low heat for 3-4 hours. After 10 minutes, taste and add salt as required.
- Once the soup has simmered and the beef is tender, strain the soup.
- Separate the oxtail from the vegetables and discard the veggies. Cover the liquid and meat in separate bowls and let them cool.
- Refrigerate overnight.
- Around 20 minutes before serving, skim any fatty deposits from the top of the soup. The soup should be set like jelly.
- Remove around two-thirds of the cloudy sediment.
- Gently warm the remaining jellified broth over medium heat.
- Pull the meat from the bones and shred it with your fingers.
- When the soup is hot and liquid, remove around 125ml (half a cup) and add it to the flour.
- Whisk to form a smooth slurry.
- Pour the slurry into the soup while whisking.
- Cook for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the shredded beef and allow it to gently warm through for 4-5 minutes.
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