If You Like French Onion Soup, Irish Onion Soup Might Win You Over

Sweet yet savory and umami onions; hearty, toothsome bread; and a blanket of caramelized, ooey-gooey cheese — is there anything more satisfying than classic French onion soup? But that's not to say this perfection can't be improved upon, or at least riffed on in a must-try way. If you already love this French-ified dish, it's time to stamp your soup passport with an Irish spin.

Chef Jason Klucharits provided Tasting Table with this tasty and comforting recipe for Irish onion soup. It combines the best familiar elements of the original French version with some exciting updates. Both French and onion soup call for onions, of course, along with beef stock or broth, a thicker bread cut into slices, butter, and basic seasonings like salt. But where French onion soup uses red wine, Irish onion soup employs both Guinness and Irish whiskey — it's like cooking the flavors of a cozy pub right into your soup. And instead of the French version's gruyere, this variation utilizes cheddar, ideally, Irish cheddar. Irish cheeses are unique due to their time-tested, traditional techniques, and top-quality milk and cheddar is a well-known example. 

Irish onion soup takes the same base of French onion soup with its savory onions and beef stock into complex territory. The stout and whiskey provide depth with notes of roastiness as well as subtle honey sweetness that plays well with the onions. This balance is both bolstered and cut by the cheese, simultaneously rich and tangy.

Touches like Irish whiskey, Irish stout, Irish cheddar, and even Irish country bread over something like a baguette — Irish bread is especially hearty and tender — shape onion soup with distinctive Emerald Isle flavors. It's great to make for St. Patrick's Day dinner, but a cozy treat any other day, too. To fully flesh out an on-theme meal, make one or two other essential Irish dishes to enjoy with the soup, like colcannon with mashed potatoes and cabbage, or boxty, like potato pancakes. 

Once you try Irish onion soup, you'll see how you can play with both French onion soup's classic foundation as well as these flavorful ingredients. Make an Italian onion soup, for example, with Italian bread, Italian wine, parmesan or mozzarella, and fresh basil. Go Swiss with Emmentaler, or funky with gorgonzola. You could also make a more Southern American version, calling on an American whiskey like bourbon. Or, change up the spirit entirely: Brandy is nice and robust with just the right amount of sweetness to complement a French onion soup, and sherry works for similar reasons. Of course, you might be too big a fan of Irish onion soup to change up your approach too much.