I love being able to whip up a batch of prepared seasoning mixes that simplify recipes and make busy days manageable. Of course we can always spend time adding single ingredients but some dishes call for a particular flacvor profile that you want to be able to provide reliably.
Dry Onion Soup Mix is one of those ubiquitous ingredients in a whole plethora of recipes. If you're trying to avoid preservatives (I'm looking at you, MSG!) or sodium, though, it can pack a heavy punch. And of course the cost per serving of a homemade batch is wildly less. My favorite part is being able to use organic ingredients, or even to use ingredients I've dehydrated or powdered myself.
Mix up a batch of this (or a half batch, or a quarter batch) and store it in the pantry to give a boost to soups and stews. I particularly like it for cooking stew beef in the crock pot. Add one ounce of mix, 2-3 pounds of stew meat, and one stick of butter to the crock pot. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8. Serve over egg noodles or the grain of your choice for some can't-be-beat comfort fare any day of the week, and any season.
Ingredients
1 cup dried onion flakes
8 tablespoons beef bouillon powder or granules*
(my favorite is Frontier Organics No-Beef Broth Powder)
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon parsley flakes
½ teaspoon celery seed
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
*You can also use low-sodium bullion here to help keep sodium in check.
Directions
Combine ingredients in a bowl and mix with a fork until well combined.
Store in a glass container in the pantry in a space that less likely to be humid.
Use
The typical dry onion soup mix pouch is 1 oz.
I recommend using a scale, but really it's fine to make a best-guess.
