Alright folks, grab a coffee because I was messing up my kitchen again yesterday. This time? Trying to copy that dried onion soup mix stuff. Yeah, the one in the little packet. Why? Because my buddy Susan can’t handle gluten, and the store stuff? Full of it. Total bummer for her baked potatoes.
The Kitchen Sink Plan
Started simple, right? Looked in the pantry. Had dried onions – score! Remembered the store stuff tasted kinda beefy and salty, but also… sweet? Weird. Okay, dumped some basics on the counter.
- Dried onions: Found half a jar, looked okay. Probably fine.
- Salt: Obvious. Like, mountains of it needed.
- Beef bouillon powder: Found one lurking at the back. Checked the label. No wheat listed. Sweet! Gluten-free claim too.
- Sugar? Nah, brown sugar! That little sweetness hint? Thought brown sugar might work better.
- Other powdery stuff: Garlic powder – duh. Some onion powder too, for extra kick. Black pepper. That’s probably it?
Felt like I was missing something. Oh yeah! Paprika? Saw that in a picture online. Grabbed it. More color, maybe.
The Messy Mixing Disaster
Okay, deep breath. Dumped the dried onions into a bowl first. Chopped them up kinda finer with kitchen shears – those flakes are huge, man.
Time for powders. Poured a bunch of beef bouillon powder in – the whole container was tiny anyway. Then, like, a massive spoonful of salt. Seriously, that packet stuff is sodium city. Added onion powder and garlic powder – eyeballed it, maybe two teaspoons each? Shook in black pepper.
Brown sugar time. Spooned in about two teaspoons? Hesitated. Threw in one more. Why not. Then, paprika. More for looks honestly, maybe a teaspoon.
Grabbed a spoon. Started mixing. Puff of onion dust went straight up my nose. Great. Coughing fit. Stirred harder. Looked like brownish sand with weird onion bits. Good enough? Decided yes.
Sniff Test & Spill
Stuck my nose in the bowl. Big sniff. Holy cow – salty, onion blast! Definitely smelled like the packet stuff, maybe even stronger. Felt a tiny win.
Now, how to store this junk? Searched for a jar. Found a clean salsa jar? Fine. Spooned the mix in. Tried pouring… bad idea. Dust storm on the counter. Swept it back in mostly. Got the lid on tight.
Label? Ha. Stuck a piece of masking tape on it. Scribbled “GF ONION SOUP?!?” with a Sharpie. Question marks essential.
The Real Moment of Truth
Couldn’t wait. Dumped a few spoonfuls into a mug. Added boiling water. Stirred. Looked muddy. Sniffed again. Yep, onion explosion. Took a sip.
Okay… salty? Way salty. Obvious. But hey, underneath? That familiar beef-onion sweetness thing was actually THERE! Maybe a tiny bit more garlicky? Maybe a tick sweeter? But honestly? Spotted the target. Felt smug. Susan can have her taters.
It’s not rocket science. Probably used way too much salt and messed up the sugar. But it works! Way cheaper than finding the fancy gluten-free packet stuff too. Just watch the salt if you make it, seriously. Lesson learned.
