No shortcuts. No cheat ingredients. Our best of the best series takes the view that if something’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right. Each month we take a deep-dive into a classic dish, delving into the processes and analysing why it tastes so good, then we share the ultimate recipe. This month: Pollyanna Coupland lifts the lid on a Gallic favourite
RECIPE AND FOOD STYLING POLLYANNA COUPLAND PHOTOGRAPHS INDIA WHILEY-MORTON
Best of the best.
A big bowl of caramelised onions topped with hefty melted cheese croutons is the perfect antidote to a cold February. Onion soup essentially consists of just onions (surprise!) and stock and it’s said to date back to Roman times. Onions were easy to grow and therefore cheap, so soupy onions remained a peasant staple until the 18th century, when the French king, Louis XV, ‘invented’ a new dish in a hunting lodge using onions, butter and champagne (all he had to hand). Suddenly, onion soup was en vogue and France’s best chefs upgraded the soup to the beefy, cheese crouton-topped creation we know and love today. Here’s my ultimate version.
KNOW YOUR ONIONS
Some recipes call for sweeter white onions, but I find big yellow (or brown) onions are best for this soup, along with banana shallots for a better balance of depth and sweetness. White onions can result in something that’s a little too sweet. I’m one of those people who thinks whenever there are onions, garlic must follow, but on this rare occasion, the garlic isn’t needed; we want it to be all about the onions.
TAKE YOUR TIME
You can’t rush caramelising the onions or they’ll taste burnt and bitter; some say to add sugar for sweetness, but then you lose out on the depth of flavour you get from properly caramelised onions. Here’s how to do it.
• You’ll need a large, heavy-based pan. It’ll look full at the start, but by the time the onions caramelise they’ll have shrunk a huge amount.
• Slice the onions finely and evenly to ensure uniform caramelisation and cook in butter rather than oil for a richer flavour.
• Stir in a big pinch of salt at the beginning, as it helps break down the structure of the onions, bringing out their moisture.
• Cover the pan for the first hour of cooking. This creates steam, which helps soften and cook the onions at the top of the pan. Once the lid is removed, the liquid will evaporate and the onions will start to turn a deep caramel colour.
• Be vigilant with your stirring, especially after the first hour. Th
