Beef Short Rib French Onion Soup
Description
Beefy French onion soup gets a hearty addition of tender short ribs in this variation of the classic favorite soup. It's a meal in a bowl. If you like, make the soup ahead of time in a slow cooker and finish it up when you get home.
Ingredients
•
1 cup all-purpose flour
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2 tablespoons salt, or more to taste
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1 tablespoon ground black pepper, or more to taste
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1 tablespoon paprika
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1 tablespoon garlic powder
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1 tablespoon onion powder
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8 meaty beef short ribs
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3 tablespoons olive oil
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1/2 cup butter
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8 sweet onions (such as Vidalia®), sliced and separated into rings
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2 quarts beef broth
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1/2 cup sherry
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12 sprigs fresh thyme
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1 (1 pound) loaf French bread, thinly sliced
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2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese
Directions
1
Mix together flour, 2 tablespoons salt, 1 tablespoon black pepper, paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder in a bowl. Dredge beef short ribs in seasoned flour mixture. Reserve 3 tablespoons leftover seasoned flour.
2
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Cook beef ribs in hot oil until browned, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Remove ribs and set aside.
3
Reduce heat to medium and melt butter in the pot. Cook and stir sweet onions in butter until soft and slightly browned, about 15 minutes; reduce heat if onions begin to burn.
4
Stir 3 tablespoons reserved seasoned flour into onions. Cook and stir for 10 minutes. Pour in beef broth and sherry; bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until soup is slightly thickened. Season with salt and black pepper.
5
Strip leaves from thyme sprigs and add leaves to soup. Return short ribs to the pot, reduce heat to low, and simmer until ribs are tender, about 2 1/2 hours. Stir soup every hour or so.
6
Preheat the oven broiler.
7
Ladle soup into oven-safe soup crocks. Carefully place a short rib into each crock. Top each soup with 2 slices French bread and sprinkle about 1/4 cup Gruyère cheese over each crock.
8
Place crocks under the preheated broiler until cheese is browned and bubbling, 2 to 3 minutes.