One Pot French Onion Rice

One Pot French Onion Rice is a decadent and incredible side dish for any night of the week, or a holiday!  This savory dish can also be transformed into a full meal!

French Onion Rice:

This is one of those recipes that I came up with because I was craving French onion anything, like maybe some French Onion Salisbury Steak. I can happily tell you that I could NOT stop eating this, directly out of the pan.  The flavor is truly incredible!  I had wanted to sneak in another holiday side dish to perhaps go along with your Roast Turkey, but this one is great with any kind of poultry or beef dish.  You could make it to serve along some Crispy Baked Chicken Thighs, or even make some Shredded Chicken to add in and make this a complete dinner.

Caramelizing Onions:

This is an easy thing to do, but it requires a little bit of patience because the process just takes time.  It is always worth it for those sweet, caramelized onions!  You’ll just start with butter, and three LARGE yellow onions!  Make sure your onions are big, and don’t be intimidated by the amount, as they will break down as they cook.

After your butter is melted, add in your onions and give them a good stir to coat well with the butter.  Now, turn your heat to medium-low and just let the onions cook down.  This is the part that requires some patience, because it will take 20-30 minutes or so total.  Keep in mind that this part adds time to the recipe but it’s truly really hands off for the most part.  You will just want to give your onions a good stir every 5 minutes or so.  You will notice some browning in the pot, but the onions should still look wet and not be burning.

A Few Recipe Notes:

• You will need to use regular, long grain white rice for this recipe.  Not instant or minute rice, it won’t turn out the same.  The same goes for brown rice too, it won’t turn out the same without increasing your liquid and cooking time.
• For best results and actual “French onion” flavor you will want to use beef broth.  You can sub out vegetable or chicken broth if you must.
• If you are sensitive to salt, I would recommend using low sodium beef broth.  Although, we do not use low sodium and do not find this recipe too salty for our tastes.
• In order for the rice to cook completely, it should be boiling at all times after you add your liquid.  If not, you will end up with crunchy rice.  Make sure you have the heat on LOW but that the rice is simmering, if not, you may need to increase your heat slightly.
• I find that Gruyere and Parmesan are my favorite cheeses for this side dish.  If you want, you can sub out the Gruyere with shredded provolone, mozzarella for a more mild flavor, or even Swiss cheese.  As always, it’s best to use freshly shredded instead of pre-shredded cheese if you can.

Enjoy!

~Nichole

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5 from 10 votes

One Pot French Onion Rice

By Nichole

One Pot French Onion Rice is a decadent and incredible side dish for any night of the week, or a holiday!  This savory dish can also be transformed into a full meal!

Prep 10 minutes mins

Cook 40 minutes mins

Servings 10

Ingredients 

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FOR THE ONIONS

• ▢ 4 Tablespoons Butter
• ▢ 3 Large Yellow Onions, Sliced

FOR THE RICE

• ▢ 3 Tablespoons Butter
• ▢ 2 Cups Long Grain White Rice
• ▢ 3 Cloves Garlic, Minced
• ▢ 2 teaspoons Dried Thyme
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Dried Oregano
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
• ▢ 4 Cups Beef Broth
• ▢ Salt & Pepper, To Taste
• ▢ 1 Cup Gruyere Cheese
• ▢ 1/2 Cup Parmesan Cheese

Instructions 

FOR THE ONIONS

• Melt the butter in a large pot over medium-low heat.
• Add the sliced onion and stir well to coat with the butter.
• Allow the onions to cook, stirring every 3-5 minutes for 20-30 minutes until soft, golden brown, and caramelized.
• Remove the onions to a plate and set aside.

FOR THE RICE

• In the same pot, melt the 2 Tablespoons butter over medium heat.
• Add the rice, garlic, thyme, and oregano to the pan and cook, stirring constantly for 2 minutes.
• Pour in the Worcestershire sauce and beef broth, stir well, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
• Reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot and simmer the rice for 15-20 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the rice to sit, covered for 5 minutes.
• Remove the lid from the pan and stir in the caramelized onions and both cheeses.
• Serve immediately. Leftovers are good stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Notes

NOTE ON ADDING MEAT:  You can add 2-3 cups of shredded cooked chicken to make this a complete meal.  Simply stir in when adding the caramelized onions and cheese.

NOTE ON SERVING SIZE:  This serves 10 as a side dish, it will serve 4-6 if using a complete meal.

Nutrition

Serving: 0.5Cup, Calories: 250kcal

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

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