French Onion Gnocchi Soup

Imagine the best French onion soup you’ve ever had. Now add tender, pillowy gnocchi. Behold: This is what dreams are made of! If you love comfort food mashups that put twists on classic dishes, such as cheeseburger soup or Reuben calzones, this French onion gnocchi soup is sure to become a fast favorite.

While traditional French onion soup—with its sweet caramelized onions, menagerie of fresh herbs and savory red wine-infused broth—hardly needs improving, the addition of soft, plump gnocchi adds just the right amount of bulk to make the soup even more hearty and satisfying. We use the gnocchi to replace the large crouton that typically crowns the top of French onion soup. The gnocchi float on the surface of the soup and absorb all the flavors of the aromatic broth while functioning as an edible personal flotation device for the mountain of toasted cheese that’s melted on top of each serving.

This recipe is a shining example of taking something that’s already a perfect 10 and turning it into an 11. So go ahead: Rebel a little and enjoy breaking the rules in the kitchen with this one. Just don’t tell France what we did to its soup.

Ingredients for French Onion Gnocchi Soup

• Butter and oil: For the best caramelized onions, try a combination of butter and canola oil. The butter gives the onions a rich, slightly nutty flavor and promotes browning, while canola oil offers a higher smoke point to prevent the onions from burning.
• Onions: When you first add them to the pot, 4 pounds of onions are going to seem like a lot of onions. However, you will be amazed by how much they reduce when the water is drawn out from them as they slowly caramelize.
• Brown sugar: A small amount of brown sugar adds depth and extra sweetness to the soup. The added sugar also helps enhance the color of the onions and speed up the caramelization process.
• Salt and pepper: No need to get fancy! Just a touch of salt and pepper is all you need to perfectly season the onions as they cook.
• Garlic: For depth, adding a few cloves of minced garlic to the soup helps make the broth wonderfully complex and aromatic.
• All-purpose flour: We like to add a bit of flour to the onions once they have caramelized. Similar to making a roux, a small amount of flour helps give the broth extra body, resulting in a velvety smooth mouthfeel.
• Tomato paste: This is our secret ingredient for an extra-rich and savory French onion broth. A few tablespoons are enough to boost the flavor of the broth without making it taste too tomato-y.
• Red wine: Red wine deglazes the pot to release any fond and offers complementary flavors to the beef broth and caramelized onions. For a flavor twist, try using a dry sherry in place of the red wine.
• Worcestershire: A few dashes of Worcestershire sauce adds some extra umami flavor to the broth.
• Beef stock: For maximum flavor, choose a high quality beef stock or bone broth.
• Herbs: A trio of fresh thyme, parsley and a single dried bay leaf infuses the gnocchi French onion soup with a herbaceous flavor. The herbs are bundled into what the French call a bouquet garni and then removed just before serving.
• Shelf-stable gnocchi: This recipe works best with a shelf-stable brand of gnocchi that cooks quickly (in under five minutes) so they become tender in the time it takes to broil the cheese in the oven.
• Cheese: A combination of Swiss (or Gruyere if you’re feeling fancy) and Parmesan creates the perfect blanket of gooey cheese that’s wonderfully sharp and pungent.

Directions

Step 1: Caramelize the onions

Melt the butter with the canola oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and stir to coat. Cover and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until softened.

Remove the lid, add the brown sugar, salt and pepper. Stir and reduce the heat to medium-low.

Continue to cook, uncovered, for 45 to 50 minutes until the onions reach a deep golden brown color.

Step 2: Deglaze and layer with flavor

Add the garlic, tomato paste and flour to the onions, and stir to evenly distribute.

Cook for two to three minutes, then deglaze the pan with red wine, scraping the bottom of the pot to release any bits.

Add the Worcestershire sauce and pour in the beef stock. Bring to a boil.

Step 3: Simmer with fresh herbs

Meanwhile, bundle the fresh thyme, parsley and bay leaf together by wrapping the herbs in cheesecloth or tying them together with cooking twine.

Add the bundle to the soup and then reduce to a simmer. Cook for 45 minutes, then turn off the heat.

Step 4: Add gnocchi and top with cheese

Remove the bundle of herbs and discard. Stir in gnocchi.

Preheat the broiler. Arrange six oven-safe soup crocks or ramekins onto a sheet pan. Ladle the soup into the soup crocks, filling them about 3/4 full. Top each with shredded Swiss or Gruyere cheese, and then sprinkle with grated Parmesan.

Step 5: Broil to golden perfection

Transfer the sheet pan to the oven and broil for three to four minutes or until the cheese is melted and starts to brown. Remove promptly and serve garnished with chopped parsley or thyme leaves, if desired.

French Onion Gnocchi Soup Variations

• Prep it with homemade gnocchi: If you have a recipe for homemade gnocchi that you enjoy, you can use it in place of the store-bought gnocchi in this recipe. Add the uncooked gnocchi to the French onion soup before topping with cheese and broiling.
• Omit the wine: If you prefer to cook without wine, omit it from the recipe and replace it with extra beef stock.
• Try different onions: French onion soup recipes are traditionally made with yellow onions because they have a nice balance of sweetness and sharpness. Feel free to try a combination of different types of onions, adding sweet Vidalia onions, red onions or shallots to the soup for a more complex flavor.
• Make it vegetarian: For a vegetarian French onion soup, opt for vegetable broth instead of beef stock. You may also wish to omit the Worcestershire sauce since it’s typically made with anchovies.

How to Store French Onion Gnocchi Soup

Let the French onion gnocchi soup cool slightly, then store it in airtight food storage containers. Keep it refrigerated.

How long does French onion gnocchi soup last?

French onion gnocchi soup will stay fresh for four or five days in the refrigerator.

Can you freeze French onion gnocchi soup?

Yes! French onion soup with gnocchi is another that you can add to your list of soups that freeze well. Omit the cheese and freeze the soup in freezer-safe containers once it has completely cooled. Store it for up to four months. To enjoy, defrost it overnight in the refrigerator before reheating, adding the cheese and broiling.

How should you reheat French onion gnocchi soup?

To reheat gnocchi French onion soup, warm the soup first on the stovetop or in the microwave until it’s heated through. Then, ladle the soup into oven-safe ramekins or soup crocks and top with cheese. Broil for three to four minutes or until the cheese is melted, golden and bubbly.

Can you make French onion gnocchi soup in advance?

Yes! Feel free to make the soup two or three days ahead and store it in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve. You can either mix the gnocchi into the soup before storing or wait and top each individual serving with uncooked gnocchi before adding the cheese and toasting.

French Onion Gnocchi Soup Tips

What can you serve with French onion gnocchi soup?

French onion soup with gnocchi makes a terrific stand-alone meal or starter to a greater feast. Serve as a main course with a side salad and a homemade French baguette. Alternatively, make it the first course ahead of other French favorites like coq au vin or a platter of steak frites.

How can you speed up the caramelization of onions?

The low-and-slow method for caramelizing onions is worth the wait. However, if time is not on your side and you want to speed things up a bit, there are a few things you can do. First, you can add a splash of water or beef broth to the onions when they first begin to cook. You can also keep the pot covered for a longer period, up to 20 minutes. Doing so will help steam the onions so they release their sugars and water content faster and begin browning sooner.

What is the best way to slice onions for French onion soup?

Did you know that how you cut an onion can impact its taste and texture? In recipes where you want the onions to retain their shape and provide a mild onion flavor (like in French onion gnocchi soup), cut with the grain of the onion, from root to stem. Conversely, cutting onions against the grain will yield a stronger flavor and cause the onions to break down more during the cooking process. For those sensitive to their smell, make sure you know how to cut onions without crying. (Yes, it’s possible!)