French onion dip is a cold chip dip that was created in the 1950’s. The original recipe was just a combination of a Lipton onion soup mix packet and sour cream. What’s pre-made and sold in the refrigerated sections of grocery stores is probably still very similar. However, this homemade version is more diverse with multiple layers of flavor and a heartier texture.
The onions are the star of this homemade French onion dip, obviously. The key is cooking them low and slow in both olive oil and butter. If you try and speed up this process you will ruin the onions. They’ll burn on the outside and won’t caramelize. Caramelizing onions is a process of slowly cooking onions to draw out their natural sugars, creating a rich, sweet and deeply flavorful result. To enhance the caramelization, one teaspoon of brown sugar is added to the onions 3/4 of the way through cooking.
The base of the dip is a combination of sour cream, mayonnaise and cream cheese. The sour cream and mayonnaise create the creamy texture, while the cream cheese thickens the dip and gives it body. The mayonnaise also helps curb the sourness from the sour cream and cream cheese. Once seasoned, you’re left with the perfect balance of sweet, tangy and savory. The sriracha gives the dip color and another layer of flavor. The recipe calls for a teaspoon which does not bring heat. If you want to have a small kick, add at least a tablespoon.
It’s best to use room temperature cream cheese for mixing purposes. If you forget to set it out, that’s okay. Once the onions are off the heat add everything to the pan the onions cooked in and use the residual heat of the pan to soften the cheese. Once everything is mixed, remove it from the pan and add to your serving bowl. Chill immediately as the dip is best served cold. However, chill too long and it’ll get hard. If you’re making ahead of time, just be aware you’ll need to set it out for thirty minutes to soften enough to spread.
I highly recommend grabbing high quality crinkle kettle potato chips to serve with this dip. Grab a big bag at Costco. The membership fee for these chips alone is worth it. You can’t beat a thick, salty, crinkle cut kettle cooked potato chip. Because the dip is rich you need a strong chip. I hope that makes sense. While you’re here, if you love dips, you MUST check out my whipped goat cheese with candied bacon and dates. It’s the most popular appetizer on the website for a reason!
French Onion Dip
Ingredients
- 2 small yellow onions
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp salted butter
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 4 oz cream cheese (1/2 brick) softened
- 1/4 c mayonnaise
- 1/2 c sour cream
- 1 tsp sriracha
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
Instructions
- Melt together olive oil and butter just under medium heat. Add diced onions and cook for 20-25 minutes until deeply caramelized. Add brown sugar after 15 minutes. Stir often. Remove from the heat.
- To a mixing bowl add cream cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, sriracha, salt, pepper, onion powder and the cooked onions. If your cream cheese hasn't softened to room temperature you can add everything to the pan of onions so the residual heat can help soften the cream cheese so it incorporates.
- Add the dip to a serving bowl and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
- Top with fresh or dried chopped chives and serve with potato chips.