Philly Cheesesteak French Onion Soup
Every now and then, you hear me talk about food on the air. I recently saw a photo posted by my friend, Wani on Facebook, of a bread bowl full of Philly cheesesteak. I was inspired to take it a step further and create a Cheesesteak French Onion Soup.
After I spoke on the air about creating this recipe, my friend, Geoff Johnson, the chef at Ott’s Good Earth Garden in West Creek, New Jersey, sent me a private message with a photo of a gorgeous round loaf of sourdough bread with the message: “Here’s your bread bowl for the Philly cheese steak French onion soup”- 😁
“Now I want to make the French onion on the menu lol”
If you’re not into the bread bowl idea, please feel free to use soup crocks instead.
For The Soup Prep
3 pounds of large yellow onions sliced thin
extra virgin olive oil to coat bottom of a soup pot or Dutch oven
4 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons Kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 cloves garlic diced
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried thyme
8 to 10 cups beef stock
1/2 cup Dry Sherry
French bread or baguette sliced into 1 ½ inch pieces.
For the Cheesesteak Prep
1 medium red pepper sliced in thin strips.
1 medium green pepper sliced in thin strips.
12 ounces boneless ribeye sliced thin.
2 cups shredded Gruyere or Swiss cheese.
4 Bread bowls or soup crocks
INSTRUCTIONS:
Coat bottom of a Dutch Oven or soup pot with olive oil under medium heat. Add the butter and the onions to the pot and sauté for 20 -25 minutes or until the onions are light brown.
Add the Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, garlic, bay leaf, and thyme. Mix in and cook for a few minutes longer until the flavors meld.
Add the dry sherry and deglaze the pan, making sure to scrape up any brown bits that stick to the bottom of the pot.
Add the beef stock to the pot and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to low, and let simmer for 30 minutes.
While the soup is simmering, in a large skillet over medium heat, coat the skillet with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.
Add sliced peppers, salt & pepper to taste, and cook until slightly soft 7 to 8 minutes.
Add the sliced ribeye to the skillet with the peppers and cook until the meat is no longer pink. You may want to cut the meat into bite size pieces for the soup after it’s cooked.
Add the peppers and steak to the soup. Taste for seasoning.
Discard the bay leaf and ladle the soup into bread bowls or soup crocks if you prefer.
Place a slice or 2 of baguette on top of each soup crock or bread bowl, and top with a 1/2 cup or desired amount of cheese.
Place the crocks or bread bowls on a cookie sheet and place them under the broiler until cheese is brown and bubbling.
