JULIA: I'm chopping onions for French onion soup. We're going to brown them in butter and simmer them in stock and then gratinée them, like this. This is French onion soup, exactly the same kind ...

Among the factors qualifying the soup as among the best are the deeply colored, caramelized onions stirred in melted butter, ...

My version of the French onion soup recipe is rich and sustaining due to the oxtail, the toasted bread, and loads of cheese. I added the oxtail to give the store-bought broth a richer flavor.