Onion Soup Mix

I have a few recipes in my standard rotation that call for packets of dry onion soup mix.  I used to keep the store-bought stuff around when I could find it on sale, but I have apparently been missing all of the sales lately, and awhile back I went to make a meal only to find I was completely out of onion soup mix!

I HATE being out of stuff.  I mean, I truly hate it!  It takes me back to the days when I had a grocery list a mile long and after spending $200 at Walmart each week, I would come home and still feel like we had nothing to eat, and within a few hours there was already new stuff being added to the next grocery list.

Because I can’t seem to find this stuff on sale on a regular basis anymore (dear Albertson’s, I miss you more than you could possibly imagine!), I’ve since started making my own.  And it is surprisingly easy to do!  Not to mention, it costs MUCH less than the store-bought versions, even on sale, and it only uses seven ingredients.

(Have you SEEN the list of ingredients on the box of the store-bought stuff??? I’m still questioning why my onion soup mix needs to have caramel coloring…)

Most of the ingredients you may already have on hand.

You’ll need:

• Dry minced onion, sometimes labeled as onion flakes – I keep this stuff on hand at all times and to be honest, whenever a recipe calls for onions, this is almost always what I use because I generally do not keep fresh onions around.  You can get this in the large #10 cans (which I keep as part of my food storage) or you can find smaller jars or bottles at grocery stores with the spices.  (The Tone’s on the right came from Sam’s Club – I bought it a LONG time ago before I had food storage, and I love the container so much I just kept it and then refill it with the stuff from my #10 cans.  I have seen the minced/chopped onion in big bottles like these at both Sam’s Club and Costco.)

• Beef bouillon – you can use powdered or granules.  You can even use bouillon cubes and just crush them before adding in to your mix.  I’ve found the cubes and the granules at the regular grocery store, but the powdered bouillon can be harder to find.  I happen to have a large #10 can of the stuff as part of my food storage.  Mine is from Augason Farms, but I know that Emergency Essentials also sells the large cans, too, and Honeyville Grains sells large plastic tubs of the powdered “broth”.l  Wyler’s does sell a beef bouillon powder in the small jars, but it is tough to find in stores.  If you’d like to get one of the big cans, Walmart seems to have the best price right now – and free shipping for in-store pickup.

• onion powder

• black pepper

• sugar

• paprika – you can use the reguler ol’ stuff, or if you want to be a little more adventurous, try using smoked paprika!

• celery seed – you’ll want to either grind your celery seeds (thanks to Alton Brown, I now keep a small coffee grinder around just for grinding spices) or place them on a cutting board and crush them carefully with the flat side of a knife, bottom of a glass or cup, etc.

• garlic powder (optional) – you could even go with granulated garlic here if you wanted, or get wild and add just a bit of freeze dried!

 

Mix it all together and store it in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.  When a recipe calls for a packet of dry onion soup mix, you can now just use your own homemade stuff!  Depending on how strong of a flavor you like, 2-3 tablespoons of the homemade mix is the equivalent of 1 store bought packet.

You can also try adding in a 1/4-1/2 tsp of garlic powder for a little extra flavor!

It really is easy to whip up, and it is so handy to have on-hand!  I’ve found I use mine a lot more than I thought I would.

This recipe will make the equivalent of about 4 1/2 store-bought packets.  If you use a lot of onion soup mix, you might want to double the recipe – it will fill a pint-size jar.

Add a nice chalkboard label on the front (which I have but for the life of me cannot find, grrr) and you’ve got yourself a cute addition to your pantry, or make some for family and friends to give away!  This will keep for quite some time if you are careful to store it in a cool, dry place.

Pull it out anytime a recipe calls for dry onion soup mix – just be sure to shake or mix before to redistribute the ingredients (the onions end up on top and everything else sinks to the bottom over time).