This old time favorite French Onion Dip is made from scratch (no packet of dried onions here) but it tastes just like the original.
Why is it I can’t stop eating this delicious dip? It’s partly because it was always available at parties when I was a kid. And there’s the creamy sour cream, and the sweet onion flavor, and the salt. Yum.
Packet or Homemade French Onion Dip?
But what happens when you crave this and don’t have the requisite packet of French Onion Soup powdered mix that is usually used to make it (here’s the classic recipe)? I found myself wondering if I could get the same flavors from scratch, without the packet. So I thought about what I remember about the flavors and went to it.
I wanted some sweet, caramelized onion flavor, and also a bit of harsher, hot onion flavor. And salt.
I tried a couple different things but here’s what tasted most like the original. After trying this, I doubt you’ll want to go back to the packet.
Making Homemade French Onion Dip
First, I caramelized two large onions by sautéing them slowly over low heat for a long time, about 20 minutes. You want them really soft, squishy and brown. You can see more on how to caramelize onions here.
Note that sometimes people add sugar at the beginning of caramelizing onions to speed up the process, or they use sweet onions, like Vidalias, to make the result sweeter. I advise against both here. You want a tiny bit of sweetness from caramelizing the onions but you don’t want it too sweet. Use regular cooking onions and don’t add sugar.
From here, it’s as easy as can be. You mix together sour cream, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper. It’s the garlic and onion powders that give the hotter/stronger onion flavor to the dip so don’t skip them. Then add in your cooked onions. Taste to see if you want more salt.
Then start drenching those chips! (Or dip in some veggies if you’re trying to be good.)
French Onion Dip is a classic for parties or snacking on during the big game. Looking for some other great dips? Try our Blue Cheese and Kale Artichoke Dips. We even have a whole series of Slow Cooker Dips to make entertaining a breeze!
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French Onion Dip
This old time favorite French Onion Dip is made from scratch (no packet of dried onions here) but it tastes just like the original.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 2 cups 1x
- Category: Appetizers
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 2 medium-large regular cooking onions, chopped (approximately 2 cups once chopped)
- 1 and ½ cups sour cream (light and fat free sour cream also work)
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- ½ tsp. onion powder
- ½ tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. black pepper
Instructions
- In a medium skillet over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the chopped onions. Cook and stir until softened but not darkening, about 3-4 minutes. Reduce heat to low and cover. Stir occasionally while letting them cook until soft and brown and squishy, about 20-25 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a medium bowl combine sour cream, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper.
- Once cooked, add onions to sour cream mixture. Stir to combine. Taste. Add more salt if desired.
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