Crock Pot French Onion Soup ~ The Recipe Bandit (2024)

Layered Gooey Provolone cheese, thick french bread, and deeply caramelized onions make this homemade Crock Pot French Onion Soup just as good as at a restaurant!

French Onion Soup is often one of our guilty pleasures at restaurants. The gooey cheese and the deep gentle flavors are so satisfying and filling! Making Crock Pot French Onion Soup at home lets you have the same flavors in the comfort of your own home with pantry staples.

So many recipes call for high end ingredients and a crazy amount of preparation time. French Onion Soup doesn’t really have to be that fancy. Using the slow cooker to caramelize the onions takes almost all of the work out of this wonderful soup!

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Crock Pot French Onion Soup ~ The Recipe Bandit (1)

The Secret to French Onion Soup Made Easy

This soup was such a pleasant surprise. The slow cooker does the work. The only thing that I need to mention is that this recipe requires time.

I started cooking the onions in the Crock Pot just before I went to bed. I put everything in, stirred it up, covered it, set the temperature to low and left it.

In the morning when I got up for work I stirred it. When the onions were all caramelized and browned and delicious smelling, I added the broth, left it for a few hours and we had it for dinner.

There is very little work to this recipe, just time, but this is one of the best bowls of French Onion Soup that I have ever had!

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How to Caramelize the Onions in the Crock Pot for French Onion Soup

Peel the onions and then cut into thin wedges. Melt the butter and then combine the onion wedges, melted butter, brown sugar, rice wine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and salt in the bowl of a 6 quart or larger slow cooker.

Stir until everything is well combined then cover and allow onion mixture to cook for 12 hours on low heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are browned and caramelized and your kitchen smells amazing.

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Bringing the French Onion Soup Together

Once the onions have caramelized, add 6 cups of beef broth, 2 bay leaves, 1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves, and salt and pepper to the slow cooker. Stir well.

Allow the flavors to develop for another 4-5 hours on low or if it works better for you time-wise, change to high heat and cook 2-3 hours. The flavors will really come together in this time.

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Adding The Finishing Touches for French Onion Soup

Preheat the broiler of the oven to 500 degrees F. Move a cooking rack to the top third of the oven. Remove the bay leaves from the soup and then divide the soup evenly between six ovenproof bowls.

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Crock Pot French Onion Soup

Layered gooey Provolone cheese, thick french bread, and deeply caramelized onions make this homemade Crock Pot French Onion Soup just as good as at a restaurant!

Equipment

1 slow cooker / crockpot

Ingredients

Caramelized Onions

4 medium onions sliced into thin wedges
4 tbsp butter melted
2 tsp brown sugar
2 tsp rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp salt

Soup

6 cups beef broth
2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Final Touches

6 slices french bread cut to fit bowls
6 slices Provolone cheese

Instructions

In the bowl of a 6 quart or larger Crock Pot set on low heat, combine the onion wedges, melted butter, brown sugar, rice wine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and salt. Stir until everything is well combined.
Cover and allow onion mixture to cook for 12 hours on low heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are browned and caramelized and your kitchen smells amazing.
Add 6 cups of beef broth, 2 bay leaves, dried thyme leaves, salt and pepper. Stir well. Allow to cook for another 4-5 hours on low or, if it works better for you time-wise, change to high heat and cook 2-3 hours.
Preheat oven broiler to 500 degrees F. Move an oven rack to the top third of the oven.
Remove the bay leaves and divide the soup evenly between six ovenproof bowls. Place a slice of french bread on top of the soup in each bowl and cover with a slice of Provolone cheese.
Place the bowls onto a baking sheet and put them into the oven for 2-3 minutes until cheese is melted and slightly browned.
Remove from oven and serve immediately. Enjoy!

Nutrition *

* The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator.

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Crock Pot French Onion Soup ~ The Recipe Bandit (10)

Michelle Mundy

As a busy working mom with kids on the go, I know how important it is to be able to make simple and delicious meals using everyday ingredients. The recipes shared here are family friendly with easy to understand step by step instructions. Tried and true, from our family to yours. Welcome to The Recipe Bandit! Click here to read more about me.

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