If you love the flavors of French onion soup, you've got to try this One Pot French Onion Soup Pasta! It combines caramelized onions and mushrooms in a silky sauce infused with garlic and thyme. Finish it with a shower of freshly grated Gruyère and you've got the ultimate bowl of comfort.
One pot pastas are extremely popular since they require less pots and pans and cook the entire dish, from the sauce to the pasta itself, all at once. Not only that, but whatever flavors you use for the sauce cook right into the pasta which adds even more flavor than just boiling in water!
This recipe combines the flavors of my favorite soup of all time, French onion soup, with pasta. An additional umami element, sliced cremini mushrooms, adds heartiness while a classic combination of beef broth, wine, and garlic enhances the sauce with tons of flavor.
A small bit of flour helps to thicken the sauce, similar to how you'd add body to the soup. The result is a luscious, glossy sauce that clings to every noodle.
Ingredient notes
- Onions: Brown onions work just fine here, but if you want to use sweet onions, go ahead. Make sure not to slice them too thinly. About ¼-inch thick slices are best because any thinner and the onions will completely melt and fall apart as they cook for that long.
- Mushrooms: Obviously mushrooms aren't in French onion soup, but I think they're a fantastic addition to this one pot French onion soup pasta! They add a bit more substance and umami flavor. I prefer cremini mushrooms and like to trim and slice them myself so they are thinner than the pre-sliced variety.
- Garlic: Garlic adds tons of flavor to the sauce! It's not too garlicky but just well-balanced and so tasty. Mince or crush the garlic so it combines evenly.
- Thyme: Thyme is one of my favorite herbs and it marries really well with mushrooms and meat dishes. Here, it just adds another layer of flavor and allows the finished French onion soup pasta to sing. Dried thyme works great, but if you are using fresh thyme double the amount.
- Wine: This recipe includes both white wine and some port or madeira wine for additional sweetness. If you don't have port or madeira wine you could try using some sherry. If you need to skip the alcohol, use more broth or water instead and maybe a pinch of sugar, but the flavor won't be the same.
- Broth or Stock: This recipe uses either beef broth or stock. You could try it with chicken broth instead, but the flavor will not be as close to a traditional French onion soup.
- Pasta: Use a short pasta shape such as rigatoni, penne, orecchiette or shells. The amount of cook time will vary depending on your selected shape.
- Cheese: I recommend using the same type(s) of cheese you'd melt on top of your bowl of French onion soup! Ideally go for Gruyère or Comté cheese, but as a backup you could try Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino Romano. I don't call for a lot of cheese mixed into the pasta, but you can always add however much you want. I also like to grate some more over the top before serving.
How to make it
Heat a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat and melt the butter. Add sliced onions and a big pinch of salt. Stir to coat with the melted butter, cover and cook for 10 minutes until soft and translucent.
Uncover and continue to cook over medium-low to medium heat, stirring occasionally to keep the onions from sticking, for another 30 to 45 minutes until caramelized.
Add sliced mushrooms and minced or crushed garlic and stir to combine with the caramelized onions. Season with salt and pepper and add dried thyme. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are softened, about 5 minutes.
Deglaze the pot by adding the white wine and port and scraping up any browned bits on the bottom. Stir in flour to create a smooth paste and cook for another minute.
Gradually add beef broth, water, and Worcestershire sauce, stirring regularly to avoid any lumps, and raise the heat to high to bring to a boil. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
Note: You may want to over-salt the mixture because a lot of the salt will absorb into the pasta as it cooks, leaving the resulting sauce less seasoned.
Stir in pasta, lower the heat to medium-low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally until the pasta is al dente and most of the liquid has absorbed, about 15 to 20 minutes (depending on the pasta shape).
Note: I find it can take longer than what the pasta packaging indicates because it’s cooking with less liquid over a lower temperature.
Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed. Stir in grated cheese, allowing it to dissolve and melt into the sauce. It will help thicken it slightly.
Serve French onion soup pasta immediately with more cheese and chopped chives, if desired.
Please scroll to the bottom of the post for the full recipe (in a printable recipe card) including ingredient amounts and detailed instructions.
Expert tips
Although this one pot french onion soup pasta is straightforward and simple, it takes time to make. You need about 45 minutes (or more!) to make caramelized onions. If you want them even deeper and darker, you'd cook them an hour or longer.
Anyone who says you can "caramelize" onions in 20 minutes doesn't know what they're talking about and shouldn't be trusted. Those onions might be cooked but they aren't caramelized.
This recipe is so good because it actually takes the time required to caramelize the onions and help build the most flavor in the sauce. If you want to take shortcuts, by all means cook your onions for less time but they won't be the same.
Other recipes you may like
- The BEST French Onion Soup
- French Onion Soup Dumplings
- Basler Mehlsuppe (Swiss Flour Soup from Basel)
- Älplermagronen (Swiss Alpine Macaroni and Cheese)
- Mushroom Gruyère Grilled Cheese
- Jägerschnitzel (Schnitzel with Mushroom Gravy)
Tried this recipe? Please leave a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page. You can also follow me on social media on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
One Pot French Onion Soup Pasta
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil (or combination)
- 3 large yellow onions peeled, halved and cut into ¼-inch thick slices
- Kosher salt
- 8 ounces (225 grams) cremini mushrooms wiped clean, trimmed and thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic crushed or minced
- Freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ cup white wine
- 2 tablespoons port or madeira wine
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 4 cups beef broth or stock
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 pound (455 grams) short pasta such as rigatoni, penne, orecchiette, or shells
- ¼ cup (20 grams) finely grated Gruyère or Comté cheese or more as desired (you could also use Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino Romano but it won’t be the same)
- Chopped chives for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Heat a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat and melt the butter. Add the onions and a big pinch of salt. Stir to coat with the melted butter, cover and cook for 10 minutes until soft and translucent. Uncover and continue to cook over medium-low to medium heat, stirring occasionally to keep the onions from sticking, for another 30 to 45 minutes until caramelized.
- Add the mushrooms and garlic and stir to combine with the caramelized onions. Season with salt and pepper and add the thyme. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are softened, about 5 minutes.
- Deglaze the pot by adding the white wine and port and scraping up any browned bits on the bottom. Stir in the flour to create a smooth paste and cook for another minute.
- Gradually add the broth, water, and Worcestershire sauce, stirring regularly to avoid any lumps, and raise the heat to high to bring to a boil. Taste and season with salt and pepper. You may want to over-salt the mixture because a lot of the salt will absorb into the pasta as it cooks, leaving the resulting sauce less seasoned.
- Stir in the pasta, lower the heat to medium-low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally until the pasta is al dente and most of the liquid has absorbed, about 15 to 20 minutes (depending on the pasta shape). I find it can take longer than what the pasta packaging indicates because it’s cooking with less liquid over a lower temperature.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed. Stir in the cheese, allowing it to dissolve and melt into the sauce. It will help thicken it slightly. Serve immediately with more cheese and chopped chives, if desired.
Nutrition
*All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.*
Lucy Reinbold says
This was amazing!! We all had a second helping and my son declared it one of his favorite pasta dishes ever! If you enjoy French onion soup, you need to make this!