One of my all time favorite soups is French Onion. It’s always so warm, comforting, and perfect for a cold winter day. I really wanted soup, but also something hearty and more of a meal. So, this French Onion Chicken was born. It doesn’t require a ton or work, and has a delicious outcome. I served it with roasted garlic baguettes topped with a mix of Swiss and gruyere cheese. Food for the soul.
the process
I started by caramelizing the onions. This requires some patience, mine took about an hour to fully caramelize. However, it is so worth the wait. Just set some sliced onions on medium heat with some salt to draw out the moisture, and cook down. They will slowly release water and become soft and browned.
I then browned some chicken thighs in the same pan. You don’t have to fully cook, just get the skin nice and golden brown.
This recipe really is easy, it just requires some extra time and patience. But, I promise it is well worth the wait!
[recipe title=”French Onion Chicken” servings=”4″ time=”2hrs 30 mins” difficulty= “easy”]
This is a really easy and comforting recipe that is perfect when you’re craving some French onion soup but want a little something a little more filling.
[recipe-ingredients]
– 4 chicken thighs, bone-in and skin on
– 3 sweet onions
– 2 tablespoons olive oil
– 1 tablespoon butter
– 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
– 1 cup white wine
– 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
– 1 teaspoon chopped, fresh thyme
– Black pepper to taste
– 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
– 1 pound mushrooms, destemmed, and quartered
– 1 baguette
– 1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
– 1 cup shredded gruyere cheese
– 5 cloves garlic
[/recipe-ingredients]
[recipe-directions]
1. Slice the onions thin. To a large pot on medium low heat, add olive oil and butter, then add onions and salt. Cook the onions for about 1 hour, or until golden, soft, and caramelized (patience is a virtue :)). Stir occasionally throughout the process, towards the end of the cooking time, they are more likely to burn because of the sugar in them so don’t walk away and keep an eye on them. About 10 minutes away from being done, add the mushrooms and brown, no need to cook completely.
2. While the onions are cooking, remove the chicken thighs from the fridge. Season with salt and pepper to taste, along with the chopped thyme. Let sit and come to room temperature.
3. Remove caramelized onions from pan and set aside. Add in additional olive oil if the pan is dry. Turn up heat to medium high and add in the chicken thighs skin side down. Brown on all sides until golden, if they’re not fully cooked, don’t worry they will continue cooking in the oven. While the chicken is browning, preheat the oven to 400°F.
4. Remove browned chicken thighs and place in a cooking dish (I used a 9 x 13). Return the onions and mushrooms and add the wine. Cook for about 5 minutes or until slightly reduced. Add in the chicken broth, bring to a simmer. Once simmering, add the vinegar.
5. Pour over the onion broth mixture over the chicken thighs in the dish. Here, you can add a couple springs of time over the top for extra flavor. Cover the baking dish with a cover or aluminum foil and bake at 400°F for 1 hour. Remove the foil after 30 minutes. At the same time, you can wrap the garlic cloves in foil with olive oil and place in the oven next to the dish.
6. While the chicken is cooking, shred the cheeses and slice the baguette. Dry out the slices in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until dry.
7. When the chicken is done and the garlic is roasted, remove both from oven. Mash the garlic cloves together and spread over the dried baguette slices. Top with the shredded cheese and bake in the same oven at 400°F for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.
8. To serve, place one cheese baguette slice on the bottom of a plate, top with French onion broth and chicken thigh. Enjoy!
[/recipe-directions]
[recipe-notes]
This keeps for a few days really well. I used the leftovers over some pasta and mixed in some kale. This would also be great served over mashed potatoes!
[/recipe-notes]
[/recipe]
