French Onion Mac
Caramelized onion, two cheeses, and macaroni in one pot. The onions get done at home.
- calories
- 810
- weight
- 6.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 125
- protein
- 28 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 2 min
- cook
- 12 min
- total time
- 14 min
- water
- 600 ml boiled
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Canister stove
- Liquid fuel
- Alcohol / Esbit
- Backpacking
- Basecamp
- Car camping
- Winter / snow
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- One pot
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Small pasta | 3 oz | elbows or small shells, nothing that needs 12 minutes |
|---|---|---|
| Dried caramelized onions | 1/4 cup | caramelized at home and dehydrated, see packing |
| Cheddar cheese powder | 3 tbsp | |
| Whole milk powder | 2 tbsp | |
| Hard gruyere or aged cheddar | 1.5 oz | a wedge, not shredded |
| Grated parmesan | 1 tbsp | the shelf-stable canister kind |
| Vegetable bouillon | 1 tsp | |
| Cornstarch | 1 tsp | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp | |
| Nutmeg, black pepper | a pinch of each | |
| Dried thyme | 1/4 tsp |
Method
- Bring 600 ml of water to a boil. Add the pasta and the dried onions at the same time; the onions need the full boil to come back.
- Simmer 8 to 10 minutes, stirring so nothing welds to the bottom. Do not drain. The starchy water is the sauce base.
- Cut the heat. Let it sit off the flame for a minute so the pot stops scorching.
- Stir the cheese powder, milk powder, cornstarch, bouillon, parmesan, nutmeg, pepper, and thyme together in your cup, then add the dry mix to the pot. Dry first, or it clumps.
- Cube the hard cheese in and pour the oil over. Stir until smooth. Lid on for two minutes if it is still thin.
The original is a bechamel baked under breadcrumbs, which is three pans and an oven. Neither travels. What survives the translation is the part that actually matters: onions cooked down until they are sweet and dark, sitting in something cheesy and starchy. Everything else was structure holding that up.
The roux is gone. Cornstarch plus the pasta water does the thickening, and the milk powder replaces the two and a half cups of milk without carrying any of the weight. Cheese powder gives you a sauce that will not break; the wedge of real cheese gives you flavor the powder cannot. Use both. Dehydrating the onions is the only step that takes real time, and it happens at home, weeks ahead.
Packing
Slice four onions thin, cook them down in oil over low heat until deep brown, then dehydrate at 135F until brittle. A pound of onions ends up around a cup dried and keeps for months. Pasta and onions in one bag, all the powders premixed in a second, cheese wedge on its own.
Variations
- A splash of dry sherry or brandy in a dropper bottle, added at the end, gets closer to the soup.
- Toasted panko in a small bag, sprinkled on at the last second, brings back the crust.
- Beef bouillon instead of vegetable if you are not keeping it vegetarian.
https://mealswithmaria.site/french-onion-soup-mac-and-cheese