French onion soup is a delicious and hearty dish that's perfect for a cozy night in or a fancy dinner party. It's made with sweet caramelized onions, beef broth or beef stock, and often topped with croutons and melted swiss cheese. Making it from scratch can take awhile though. Personally, I'm a huge fan of the frozen Costco French onion soup as part of an easy family meal.
While the French onion soup recipe itself is a classic, you might wonder what to serve with it to make it a complete meal. Below we'll explore some of the best side dishes and accompaniments to serve with French onion soup. We've got you covered whether you're looking for something for a dinner party or something for a busy weeknight. From salads to sandwiches, you'll find plenty of perfect pairings for this comforting soup!
What to Serve with French Onion Soup
When it's cold outside nothing a warm bowl of soup is so comforting. French onion is delicious on its own, but pairing it with sides, breads, or a main course can make for a more satisfying meal. The soup's rich flavor profile and warm, comforting nature make it an excellent complement to a variety of dishes.
Salads & Sandwiches
Soup and salad isn't just a pairing- it's an industry! There's a variety of quick-style lunch places that offer mainly soups, salads, and sandwiches, because they're a perfect match. These salads and sandwiches are a great way to upgrade your bowl of soup into a full meal, and most of them take very little time.
Strawberry Massaged Kale Salad
Massaging kale makes it much more tender, and the strawberries balance it for a light tasting green salad that contrasts with the heartiness of your rich and cheesy soup. If you make the dressing know the champagne vinaigrette doesn't use white wine, but rather a champagne vinegar.
Creamy & Tangy Vegan Celeriac Remoulade
If you're about to google celeriac, it's a relative of celery that's also called celery root. It's a root vegetable that's available in winter- when you're most likely to crave a some homemade French onion soup- and dresses up nicely with a tangy dressing.
Classic Caesar Salad
Is there anything a classic Caesar with parmesan cheese doesn't go well with? Maybe desserts. Maybe. It's certainly a great side dish for our delicious soup!
Strawberry Pecan Salad
Strawberries. Pecans. Feta. Need I say more? The crunchy pecans and fresh greens help balance out a hearty soup.
Italian Chopped Salad
Serve this flavor packed Italian chopped salad alongside your brothy soup for a meal that is sure to satisfy.
Steakhouse Style Wedge Salad {Without Blue Cheese}
This classic steakhouse salad is dressed with a homemade ranch, for a beautiful presentation that would be perfect for dinner guests.
Easy Cucumber Tomato Salad With Cauliflower
A classic cucumber and tomato salad with red onions and fresh lemon juice is always a refreshing addition to a meal. Adding cauliflower gives it another veggie, as well as some extra crunch!
Arugula Lentil Salad From Heaven (12 Min, Vegan)
Arugula salad is peppery and light a great contrast to our rich soup. Adding some lentils and cashews for extra fiber and protein, this salad paired with a soup is sure to keep you satisfied.
Easy Crescent Sandwiches
These 3 ingredient crescent roll meat and cheese sandwiches are perfect dipped in mustard- or a bowl of delectable soup!
Tri Tip Sandwich
This easy sandwich takes leftover tri tip and some caramelized onions for a hearty and satisfying sandwich. If you are making your soup from scratch make extra onions so you'll have them to sandwiches, pastas, and more!
Turkey and Egg Sandwich
This isn't your typical turkey sandwich- adding an egg gives it an extra savory flavor that complements your French onion soup. Plus, dipping!
Proteins
When you think of French onion soup, odds are decent you think of a steakhouse and a glass of red wine. The starting course before a decadent main course. While there's certainly some red meat on this list, it's great with a variety of entrees!
How to Sous Vide Tri Tip
Sous vide is a warm water bath that cooks food incredibly evenly, and prevents overcooking! Tri-tip is similar to sirloin, if you don't see it in your grocery store that's ok- this recipe works with any steak cut.
What is Flat Iron Steak? How To Cook Perfectly Grilled Flat Iron Steak
Often called flank steak or skirt steak, this flat iron steak is simple to prepare on a grill or grill pan while your soup gets golden brown in the oven!
Garlic Butter Pork Chop Recipe (Ready in Just 15 Minutes!)
This delicious meal uses simple flavors like fresh thyme to showcase the main ingredient- bone-in pork chops. The best thing? It comes together quickly- this cooks in just 15 minutes!
Dutch Oven Chicken Breast (with Potatoes and Vegetables)
If you're making the Cuisine Adventure's French onion soup- the one at Costco and Trader Joe's- you need to know this cooks at the same oven temperature. Just saying.
Vegetables
Veggies are flavorful and nutritious, making them the perfect side dish! Here are some that go particularly well with French onion soup.
Roasted Sweet Potato Slices with Brown Sugar
Sweet and savory, these sweet potato rounds are topped with brown sugar and broiled at the end for a caramelized top. Did I mention they cook at the same oven temperature as Costco's frozen French onion soup?
Air Fryer Zucchini and Squash
Air frying zucchini and summer squash gives it a crispier exterior than oven roasting, while keeping the tender inside.
Air Fryer Asparagus Recipe
Add some green to your table with fresh asparagus and simple seasonings. Tender but crisp, asparagus is hard to beat when it's in season.
Baked Parmesan Zucchini Sticks
Like your soup, these zucchini sticks are topped with melty browned cheese, making them a perfect pair! Just a few simple seasonings rounds out the ingredients for an easy to prepare vegetable you'll want to make regularly.
Pastas & Potatoes
While breads may be more dippable than pasta, carbs and soup go together like peanut butter and jelly. Here are some great ones to pair with your classic French onion soup.
Greek Pasta Salad
While this is a pasta dish, the salad in the title is well-earned! With plenty of veggies and feta cheese, you're sure to be full after a cup or bowl of soup and this pasta salad.
Leftover Tri Tip Steak Pasta
If you've got leftover meat to use up, this pasta is a great way to do it. Adding spinach, roasted red peppers into a lightly creamy sauce that comes together in the time it takes to cook the pasta? Yes, please!
Baked Feta Pasta with Tomatoes, Olives, and Basil
Like a few other dishes on this list, this bakes at the same temperature as a certain frozen soup. This one also bakes for the same amount of time! Not to mention it's a deliciously savory, cheesy pasta that also makes for great leftovers.
Instant Pot Baked Potatoes
If you're looking for a super simple side to bulk up your soup, baked potatoes are an easy and tasty way to do it. Using the instant pot is faster if you're in a rush.
Breads
The best option for almost any soup is bread. After all, what goes with melty cheese soup if not a slice of crusty bread? From bread sticks to soft pretzels, store bought frozen rolls to scratch made, the options are almost endless!
Air Fryer Dinner Rolls (From Frozen)
Let's start with the easiest bread on this list- rolls from the freezer section! Air frying them circulates the air so they cook evenly, and you won't feel bad about heating up your whole oven if you just want a couple of rolls.
Mushroom Crostini
Do you know what goes great with onions? Mushrooms. Unless you dislike the texture- in which case, more for me! And if you love them too, this crostini will be right up your alley.
Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins
Pumpkin isn't just for lattes! These cornbread muffins are a great fall bread, and with the sweet and savory notes they play off the tones of caramelized onions in your soup well.
Honey Butter Biscuits
These fluffy Butter Biscuits are a great option to complete your meal. No fuss, no mess, and ready in 20 minutes!
Air Fryer Croutons
Your air fryer is about to perform some magic! What's the trick? Transorming bread, oil, and spices into croutons so you can add some extra crunch to your bowl of french onion soup.
Homemade Crackers
Crackers are a classic addition to any bowl of soup. This homemade version is certainly a step up from your standard saltines or oyster crackers!
Foolproof Recipe for Bread Machine Rolls
While this recipe takes a bit, most of that time is hands-off! The dough for these easy dinner rolls is made in the bread machine to free you up for other tasks.
Smoked Gouda and Chive Scones
If you need something to sop up all that soupy goodness, try these Smoked Gouda and Chive Scones. Cheesy, smoky and herby, they are perfect alongside any meal.
Easy Olive Bread Bread Machine Recipe
This bread has olives in it, another savory ingredient that pairs well with caramelized mushrooms! And with a bread machine, it's not much work to make!
Quick and Easy Focaccia
This recipe starts with pizza dough- you can either DIY it or buy it premade in a bag from a store like Trader Joe's. It's an easy and delicious way to make fresh focaccia!
Air Fryer Herbed Spinach Rolls
These spinach rolls are a mediterranean take on dinner rolls- using filo dough, spinach, and feta cheese.
Garlic Knots
These garlic knots start with pizza dough, making them simple to prepare!
Rosemary Garlic Rolls
These easy garlic rolls start with frozen rolls that you jazz up with herbs, garlic, and butter! Making them in a skillet together makes it feel like a pull-apart bread, perfect for a family meal.
Best Dinner Roll Recipe
If you're looking for a simple scratch recipe, these dinner Rolls are pillow soft and so fluffy! You'll want more than one to dip in your French onion soup!
German Pretzel Recipe: Delicious, Fresh Homemade Pretzels
Be it a sandwich or a dipping instrument, pretzel bread makes everything better! This simple recipe is easy to follow for beginners.
Bread Machine Breadsticks
These breadsticks are a copycat recipe of olive garden, meaning they're perfect with soup! They can also be made ahead and frozen so they're ready when you are.
5 Minute Artisan Olive Oil Bread
This olive oil bread is perfect for bread lovers! It makes a big batch of dough that keeps in your fridge, then pull off the amount you want to use when you're ready.
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