What to Serve with French Onion Soup: 20 Tasty Sides

I have often thought about what to serve with French Onion Soup. You need a side dish that is just as amazing as the caramelized onion soup!

French onion soup is incredibly rich and delicious. It has lots of herbs like sage and thyme. The caramelized onions are also very powerful and sweet.

You also can’t forget about the melted gruyere cheese that tops the French onion soup.

You need to keep all of these strong flavors in mind when choosing a side dish recipe for French onion soup.

We considered all of the flavors in French onion soup when making this list of the best French onion soup side dishes. We had to do a lot of taste testing too!

It is also important to think about the seasonality of French onion soup. It is definitely a cold-weather dish. You want to choose a side dish that has wintery, warm flavors.

This is a lot to think about when planning a meal! Don’t worry because we did all the hard work for you.

French Onion Soup Sides: 15 Recipes You’ll Love

We have found 15 different French Onion soup side dishes. Some sides are light and refreshing, like a simple salad.

Other sides are hearty and help make your French onion soup a complete meal. A grilled chicken pesto panini, for example, is a perfect side dish to make a full meal.

Take a look at all of the recipes on this list, and then pick one that looks great to you. You may want to try more than one!

1. Buffalo Chicken Panini

Our Simple Green Moms buffalo chicken panini is so flavorful. The spicy buffalo sauce is tasty and goes well with warm French onion soup.

We especially love the feta cheese pressed between the layers of bread. That melty cheese reminds us of the melty gruyere cheese on top of French onion soup.

Serve the panini while still hot, straight off the panini press. You can also cook the sandwich in a saute pan, pressing it down slightly as it cooks. This will fuse the bread together with the cheese perfectly!

2. Arugula Salad

This recipe from Foodie Crush for arugula salad is simple but perfectly flavored. A nice light salad is always a good side dish to serve with your favorite French onion soup recipe!

We especially love pairing arugula salad with French onion soup. Arugula has a nice peppery taste. This pairs well with the seasoning in French onion soup. The homemade lemon vinaigrette is the perfect complement to the salad.

This salad recipe is very simple. All you need is fresh arugula and grated parmesan cheese to make the salad. It doesn’t get any easier than that!

3. Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

There is nothing quite as tasty as a classic grilled cheese sandwich like this one from Spend With Pennies. One bite will remind you of childhood.

That gooey, melted cheese is always amazing. You can never have too much cheese!

Grilled cheese is a great side dish from French Onion Soup. The crispy bread compliments the warm beef broth soup perfectly. You may even want to dunk your grilled cheese sandwiches into the soup before taking a bite.

The secret to this recipe is the mayonnaise that is spread on the bread. This helps make the bread crispy and golden brown. This little trick makes a huge difference! You will have to give the recipe a try and see for yourself.

4. French Bread

A perfect slice of this easy French bread from Lil Luna is exactly what to serve with French onion soup. Everyone loves homemade bread with soup!

Chewy French bread does take a little bit of time to make. You will need to start making the bread about three hours before you’d like to serve it.

The dough needs to mix, rise, be kneaded, rise again, and then shaped before it is even ready to bake!

Don’t be scared by the number of steps. Making bread is actually very fun!

Soften your butter and serve with French bread that has been thinly sliced. Use the chewy French bread as the bread to top your French onion soup. This bread is quite versatile!

5. Roasted Vegetables

Chelsea’s Messy Apron will show you how to make incredible roasted vegetables. Serving roasted veggies with French onion soup adds a whole lot of flavor and nutrition.

Brussels sprouts, potatoes, carrots, and red onions are tossed with olive oil, salt, and pepper. The veggies are spread on a sheet tray and roasted until tender.

Feel free to add your favorite vegetables to the pan. Root vegetables roast well. Try adding chopped butternut squash, zucchini, or yellow squash for an even more delicious meal.

6. Citrus Salad

Feasting at Home makes an incredible citrus salad with dates that you will love to serve with French onion soup. This may very well become your favorite side dish to serve with warm soup.

Blood oranges, Valencia oranges, and grapefruit slices make up the main portion of the salad. Sliced red onions, baby arugula, and shredded coconut are added to the salad for extra flavor.

Add a few chopped pecans or almonds to give the salad a nice crunch. A sprinkle of feta is also recommended to add a salty taste.

7. Seared New York Strip Steak

A grilled New York strip steak like this one from Damn Delicious is exactly what you need to make your French onion soup into a complete meal.

The key to a great steak is in the seasoning. Garlic, cumin, coriander, salt, and pepper are used in this recipe. A lot of these spices are also in your favorite French onion soup recipes. The steak will mimic the taste of your delicious soup perfectly.

Be sure to preheat your grill so it is hot and ready to cook the steak. Use this recipe to make filet mignon, T bone steak, or a nice flank steak. It works with all steak cuts.

You can also make grilled bread to go into the French Onion Soup. This adds a nice smoky taste to the soup. A nice au jus sauce is the perfect finishing touch.

8. Grilled Chicken Pesto Panini

A grilled chicken pesto panini from Cooking Canuk is a great side dish to serve with French onion soup. A nice sandwich gives you a hearty full meal. It’s always a good time for a soup and a sandwich!

The grilled chicken in this recipe is marinated in a red pepper pesto sauce. This adds a bold basil flavor to the chicken. The red pepper gives the pesto sauce a little bit of sweet heat.

Try making the panini using gruyere cheese. It will mimic the melted cheese in the French onion soup.

9. French Fried Potatoes

We love these air fryer French fries from Stay Snatched. You can’t go wrong with a big bowl of French onion soup and a plate of crispy fries!

Russet potatoes are sliced thinly and then tossed in a little olive oil. The fries are baked in an air fryer, making them crispy.

Cooking fries in the air fryer is a much healthier way to make this tasty side. You only need a tiny bit of olive oil to get beautiful, golden-brown fries!

10. Spinach Salad

Our Simple Green Moms spinach salad is a nutritious dish to serve next to French onion soup. The light salad goes well with the hearty, rich beef stock soup.

Baby spinach is nice and tender. It is a little sweet, which compliments the sweet flavor of the strawberries.

We top our salad with feta cheese but feel free to use shredded parmesan cheese or even cubed mozzarella cheese. Any kind of cheese goes well with this yummy salad!

11. Dark Chocolate Cake

If you love rich foods like French onion soup, you will definitely love this decadent chocolate cake from Sally’s Baking Addiction. The intense flavors of chocolate go well with the salty French onion soup.

This chocolate cake recipe is made with espresso powder. Espresso enhances the dark chocolate and makes it taste even stronger.

You can’t go wrong with a big slice of dark chocolate cake after eating French onion soup.

12. Baked Salmon

We love this baked salmon recipe from Natasha’s Kitchen. We always love easy recipes that taste incredible! This recipe is also a great entree to serve alongside French onion soup.

Salmon filets are brushed with a dressing made from dijon mustard, olive oil, lemon juice, fresh parsley, and pressed garlic.

The salmon is baked in the oven until perfectly tender. The strong flavors of the marinade go well with a rich French onion soup. The lemony fish helps brighten up the meal and can be perfect to serve in summer.

13. Lemon Flounder

If you are still wondering what to serve with French onion soup, Recipe Tin Eats can help you! This bright lemon flounder is a great entre to serve with French onion to make a complete meal.

We especially love this recipe because it is made in one pan. All you need is a casserole dish and an oven!

Try adding a little white wine to the lemon cream sauce. French onion soup is often made with white wine, so this addition helps tie the two foods together.

14. Balsamic Pasta

This balsamic pasta from Gimme Some Oven may be my favorite recipe of all time. It is so easy to make and packed with nutritious vegetables.

Balsamic vinegar adds a ton of flavor to the pasta. You don’t need to have a heavy cheese sauce to make great pasta!

Your French onion soup has enough yummy cheese anyway!

Make balsamic pasta to serve with your French onion soup. A piece of crusty bread is the perfect finishing touch to this meal.

15. Garlic Seared Scallops

Garlic seared scallops from Cafe Delites are exactly what to serve with French onion soup. A meal made of tasty scallops and warm soup is one you will surely crave.

The garlic scallops are sauteed in butter and lemon sauce. Scallops cook quickly, searing for just 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Be sure not to overcook the pan-seared scallops or they can get tough and chewy.

Use chicken broth in place of with for a richer scallop sauce. It will pair perfectly with your French onion soup.

16. Baked Potato Slices

We are crazy about these baked potato slices from The Cozy Cook. They are perfect to serve as an appetizer or on a plate next to your bowl of French onion soup.

Russet potatoes are baked and then sliced. The potato slices are topped with cheddar cheese and crispy bacon.

Dip the baked potato slices in cream cheese or sour cream to add a nice tangy taste to the hearty meal.

17. Pull Apart Cheese Bread

If you are still wondering what to serve with French onion soup, your answer may be pull-apart cheese bread from Little Spoon Farm.

All you need is a nice, big loaf of bread, a whole lot of cheese, and some extra spices and seasonings.

This recipe uses a blend of parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese. The cheese is stuffed into the sliced bread along with some fresh parsley, garlic powder, and butter.

The toasted bread comes out of the oven gooey and a little crispy. Pull a piece off and dunk it right into your French onion soup!

18. Baked Asparagus

This roasted asparagus from Simple Green Moms is perfect if you are looking for healthy, simple side dishes. It only takes about 2 minutes to put together and just a few minutes in the oven!

Use lemon juice in place of lime juice to make the flavors go better with your French onion soup. Lime can be a little too powerful!

19. Homemade Pasta

A plate of homemade pasta from Self Proclaimed Foodie is absolutely delightful next to your broth-based soup. Pasta may just be our favorite food, so making it from scratch is fun and tasty!

Surprisingly, pasta only takes a few minutes to make. The dough blends together quickly and is ready to roll and cut instantly.

Once you have cut your noodles, the pasta is ready to cook!

Keep the pasta side dish simple, topping it with just a little butter and cheese. Try making a French theme pasta dish to match the origin of the soup!

20. Stuffed Mushrooms

Delicious recipes like these stuffed mushrooms from Love and Lemons are perfect with French onion soup. If you are looking for a nice appetizer to serve before your soup course, this is one of the best dishes we have tried!

Baby portobello mushrooms are hollowed out and washed. The mushrooms are stuffed with a mix of breadcrumbs, cheese, parsley, garlic, pine nuts, and sun-dried tomatoes.

Serve the stuffed mushrooms and French onion soup with a nice glass of red wine or a pinot blanc. A good red wine can really help complete your dinner!

Delicious Sides to Serve with Any French Onion Soup Recipe

We hope this list helped you find the answer to what to serve with French onion soup. We know that one of these tasty recipes will go well with your favorite French onion.

Let us know which side dishes you love best! Enjoy.