Best French Onion Panade Recipes

THREE ONION PANADE

Steps:

• Melt 4 tbsp butter in a large heavy pot over medium low heat. Add the onions, leeks, shallots and a couple pinches of salt. Stir, and then cover pot and cook for 1 hour, stirring a few times. Onions will reduce by half and be very limp.
• Take lid off pot, add in sugar and crank pot up to high heat. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 15 minutes. The juices will brown and stick to the sides of the pot. Use a wooden spoon to scrape browned bits back into the onions, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pot as well. Once the onions have turned creamy and light brown in color turn the heat off and cover the pot.
• Heat oven to 350.
• Spread the cubed bread onto a baking sheet and bake until lightly toasted, about 15 minutes.
• Bring the stock to a boil. Add the bread to the onions and stir. Scrape bread and onion mixture into a wide casserole. Use the stock to rinse out the onion pot and then pour the stock into the casserole dish. Let rest for 5 minutes. The bread will have absorbed some of the stock, but there should still be enough to barely cover the bread. If not, add in some hot water.
• Spread the cheese over the top and sprinkle with brandy. Dot with the remaining butter. Bake in oven for 1 hour, or until cheese has formed a rich, dark crust.
• Spoon into bowls and serve hot.

CHARD, ONION & GRUYèRE PANADE (BREAD CASSEROLE)

Steps:

• To prepare onions: Place the onions in a deep saucepan (or Dutch oven) and drizzle and toss with oil to coat, about 1/4 cup. Set over medium-high heat and, shimmying the pan occasionally, cook until the bottom layer of onions is slightly golden around the edges, about 3 minutes. Stir and repeat. Once the second layer of onions has colored, reduce heat to low and stir in garlic and a few pinches of salt. Stew, stirring occasionally, until the onions are a pale amber and tender but not mushy, about another 20 minutes. If at any point the onions dry, cover them to trap some moisture.
• Preheat the oven to 325°F.
• To prepare chard: Place a few handfuls of leaves in a large saute pan or skillet with a drizzle of oil, a sprinkling of water (if you've just washed the chard, it may have enough on the leaves), and a few pinches of salt. Set the pan over medium heat until the water begins to steam, then reduce the heat and stir and fold leaves until just wilted, 3 to 4 minutes. (Leaves should be uniformly bright green, the white veins pliable.
• To prepare bread: Toss and massage the cubed bread with a few tablespoons of olive oil, a generous 1/4 cup of the stock and a few pinches of salt, to taste.
• To prepare panade: Use a flameproof, 3-quart souffle dish or enameled cast-iron Dutch oven. Assemble the panade in layers, starting with a generous smear of onions, followed by a loose mosaic of bread cubes, a second layer of onions, a wrinkled blanket of chard, and a handful of the cheese. Repeat, starting with bread, the onions and so on, until the dish is brimming. Aim for 2 to 3 layers of each component, then make sure the top layer displays a little of everything. Irregularity in the layers makes the final product more interesting and lovely. Drizzle with any remaining olive oil.
• Bring the remaining 3 3/4 cups stock to a simmer and taste for salt. Add stock slowly, in doses, around the edge of the dish. For a very juicy, soft panade, best served on its own, like a soup or risotto, add stock nearly to the rim; for a firm but succulent panade, nice as a side dish, fill to about 1 inch below the rim. Wait a minute for stock to be absorbed, then add more to return to the desired depth. The panade may rise a little as the bread swells.
• Set panade over low heat and bring to a simmer; look for bubbles around the edges (heating it here saves at least 30 minutes of oven time).
• Cover the top of the panade with parchment paper, then very loosely wrap the top and sides with foil. Place a separate sheet of foil under the panade or on the rack below it, to catch drips.
• Bake until the panade is piping hot and bubbly. It will rise a little, lifting the foil with it. The top should be pale golden in the center and slightly darker on the edges. This usually takes about 1 1/2 hours, but varies according to shape and material of baking dish and oven.
• Browning and serving: Uncover panade, raise temperature to 375°F, and leave until golden brown on top, 10 to 20 minutes. Slide a knife down the side of the dish and check the consistency of the panade. Beneath the crust, it should be very satiny and it should ooze liquid as you press against it with the blade of the knife. If it seems dry, add a few tablespoons simmering stock and bake for 10 more minutes.

FRENCH ONION PANADE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 325.
• Divide bread slices among 2 or 3 baking sheets. Spread bread out in a single layer, and toast for 20 minutes, then flip slices, and rotate pans to ensure even toasting. Toast until dried out and lightly golden, about 35 minutes total. Set aside. Increase oven temperature to 425, and adjust oven rack to center position.
• Set a large Dutch oven or similar pot over medium heat. Add 4 tablespoons butter and olive oil. When butter has melted, add onions and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Cook covered for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.
• Once the onions cook down a bit and release some liquid, remove lid and increase heat to medium high. Continue cooking and stirring regularly until onions are tender and dark golden brown, about 45 minutes total. Turn off heat, add vinegar and wine and stir to deglaze. Taste, and adjust salt and vinegar as needed - the onions should be sweet, savory and pleasantly tangy. Spoon onions into a heatproof bowl, and set aside.
• Return pot to stove. Add stock and 1 teaspoon salt, and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Taste, and adjust salt as needed - it should taste like good chicken soup.
• Place both cheeses in a medium bowl, and mix to combine.
• Butter the inside of a deep 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Line the bottom with a layer of toasted bread, breaking up pieces as needed to form a solid layer. Spoon half the onion mixture evenly over the bread. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the cheese mixture, and season with pepper. Continue layering with bread, the remainder of the onions and another 1/3 of the cheese. Top off with a final layer of bread.
• Ladle 3 cups of stock over the panade, then wait a minute, and allow the bread to absorb liquid. Pressing down on panade with a metal spatula, add as much stock as the panade will absorb without overflowing. Dot the top layer of bread with remaining butter, then cover with parchment paper and foil. Place baking dish atop baking sheet to catch any overflow, then slide onto the center rack. Bake for 30 minutes, then remove foil and parchment, sprinkle with remaining cheese and return to oven for 15 minutes more. Bake until golden brown.
• Remove panade from oven, and allow it to cool for 10 minutes before serving. Cover, and refrigerate leftovers for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 months. Reheat to serve.