Yeah I know it should be easy but I have had good FOS and I have had incredible FOS. Anyone with a recipe for the latter? A little pub here in Okpo does a very good version, just no bread or cheese...

IMO, getting from good to great involves time. It takes a long while to really get the onions carmelized all the way down where you want 'em. Low and slow has always worked better for me than trying to get there quickly with higher heat, but it's a pain in the a$$.

And a proper stock is a day-long affair (roasting bones, boiling & skimming ad nauseum). I can do pretty well with Better Than Boullion concentrate, and save the trouble.

I don't have a real recipe. I use 5# of onions, 1/2 stick butter + 1/4 c. good olive oil (but not EVOO), a scant handful of Wondra flour, strong splash o' sherry, and 10 or 12 cups of stock. I like my baguette slices toasted before assembly, and I prefer a stout Guyere on top.

Hope that helps,

FC

Soupe A L'Oignon does not require a culinary degree, but for best results, allow a couple of hours, maybe longer, for a top notch soup.
"The onions for an onion soup need a long, slow cooking in butter and oil, then a long slow simmering in stock, for them to develop the deep rich flavor which characterizes a perfect brew"
That is a quote from Julia Child, a gal that really knew her way around a kitchen.
The best recipe, if anyone needs a recipe, is from her "Mastering the art of French Cooking".

As FC and Sam said, looong slow caramelized onions and even longer to cook home made stock from roasted bones are the only tricks.
But the results are far ahead of the mediocre results from trying to make it from canned or commercial products.

Stock....
roasted shanks and cut up femur bone.(ribs from a prime rib roast are great too, but can be fatty) Yellow onions, carrots, celery, pepper corns, bay leaf, garlic cloves, tomato paste and red wine. Salt to taste. Strain and clarify as best you can. This should take a whole day in itself, 8-10 hour simmer.

Caramelize yellow onions very slowly in butter and olive oil (about 75/25), should take at least 30 minutes or more.

Add to stock and poach or very low simmer for another hour or let cool and set overnight.

Serve with a splash of sherry and top with toast and Swiss, gruyere, or munster cheese melted on top.

make the onion pie in the" sticky " and call it good !