This crowd-pleasing French Onion Dip is creamy and full of caramelized onion flavor, and it's the perfect party or game night appetizer. It pairs really well with salty potato chips and you can keep it classic or make it healthier with Greek yogurt.
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Why This Recipe Works
- Creamy and flavorful - This dip is the perfect appetizer for the colder months. The caramelized onions make it decadent and fresh herbs give it freshness. Paired with potato chips, it's guaranteed to be a hit at every party!
- Better than store-bought - Anything homemade is always better and that's especially true with this onion dip! Nothing beats freshly caramelized onions and fresh herbs! The flavor of any store-bought dip doesn't even come close to how delicious this one is!
- Make it your own - You can keep this dip classic or you can turn it into a lighter version by using only Greek yogurt. There are many ways you can make it so it's a great appetizer for when you don't have much on hand. You can use sour cream, greek yogurt, cream cheese, or classic mayonnaise. I like using a mix of sour cream and Greek yogurt but you can use whatever you like and have on hand!
Ingredients Notes
- Sweet or yellow onions - I recommend you use sweet onions. They're less pungent than yellow onions and have higher water content. If you don't have sweet onions, yellow or white onions will work just as well. (pictured below are yellow onions)
- Sour cream and Greek yogurt - A mix of both is a great flavor combination but you can also use only Greek yogurt for a lighter dip. If you want to make it more classic, you replace a part of the sour cream or greek yogurt with mayonnaise. I like using avocado or coconut oil mayo as a healthier option.
- Onion powder - This is optional but it adds an additional, slightly different onion flavor.
- Worcestershire sauce - This gives the dip that little something, a little umami flavor. You can also use tamari if you don't have or like Worcestershire sauce.
- Fresh herbs - Fresh parsley or chives are both great options. Fresh herbs are always the best choice here but if you don't have any, you can use dried ones.
Substitutions and Variations
- Beef broth - To enhance the "french onion" flavor even more, you can use beef broth for deglazing the pan instead of just water.
- Apple cider - To help the onions caramelize, I like to use a mix of apple cider and water (not apple cider vinegar) to deglaze the pan. The natural sugar will help the onions caramelize quicker and it will add a nice fall flavor to the dip.
- Cream cheese - If you don't have sour cream or Greek yogurt, you can use cream cheese or mayonnaise.
- Make it vegan - Use your favorite vegan yogurt or vegan mayo to keep the dip vegan.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Heat the avocado oil in a large skillet over high heat.
Add the sliced onions and sea salt to the skillet. Toss to coat well with the oil and cook for 5 minutes on high.
Lower the heat to medium and continue cooking, stirring every 3-5 minutes or so. If you stir the onions too often, they won’t have enough time to caramelize properly. The whole process will take 45-50 minutes.
At the 30-minute mark, the onions should be reduced and you should be able to see lots of caramelization happening. At this point, the onions start to stick so add a splash of water to deglaze the pan.
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Continue cooking, stirring, and adding more water as needed for another 15-20 minutes.
The onions are done when they’re golden brown and visibly caramelized. Add the minced garlic for the last 1-2 minutes of cooking.
Add one last splash of water to get all the flavor bits off that are stuck to the pan and allow the water to evaporate before transferring the onions to a bowl to cool.
When you're ready to make the dip, add the sour cream, greek yogurt, caramelized onions, fresh herbs, onion powder, black pepper, and sea salt to a large bowl. You can reserve a tablespoon or two of the caramelized onions for garnish.
Use a spoon to mix everything together. Add more pepper or sea salt to taste and keep in the fridge until ready to serve. I like to serve the dip cold because if you keep it in the fridge for at least 1-2 hours before serving, it will thicken up. This is especially true if you add the caramelized onions while they're still slightly warm. If you don't have time to wait, it can be served right away as well!
Serving
You can serve this dip with any chips or crackers you like but I recommend serving it with some really good crunchy potato chips. My latest favorite is truffle potato chips. The flavors go perfectly together!
Besides chips, crackers, toasted bread, pretzels, or veggies are all great options!
If you haven't already picked cocktails to go with this dip, a classic old-fashioned is always a good choice. You can try my Blood Orange Old Fashioned if you haven't yet! It's a nice citrusy version of the classic cocktail.
Storing
Any leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Unfortunately, the dip can't be frozen because the texture will change after defrosting. Once the sour cream defrosts, it becomes grainy and not as creamy as before.
FAQs
No, unfortunately, the sour cream becomes grainy after defrosting and so does the greek yogurt. They both lose their creaminess so the dip wouldn't have the same texture.
There are many brands of vegan sour cream and yogurt on the market these days so you can easily make this dip vegan. If you can't find any, you can use vegan cream cheese.
It's not the healthiest dip but if you want to make it lighter, you can use only Greek yogurt instead of combining it with sour cream.
Other Dips
If you like this dip, I highly recommend you check out the four dips linked below! The lentil dip is my all-time favorite and the eggplant dip is great for the summer or anytime you want to make a lighter dip. Both would also be delicious served with this onion dip. To see all the latest dips, head over to the Dips, Dressings, and Spreads category.
- Roasted Eggplant Dip
- Roasted Garlic Hummus (a classic with lots of delicious garlicky flavor)
- Goat Cheese Lentil Dip with Dill and Capers
- Beet Hummus with Beetroot Powder (a fun dip for Valentine's Day!)
📖 Recipe
French Onion Dip
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 50 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 4-6 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This French Onion Dip is the perfect game night or party appetizer. You can keep it classic or make it lighter with Greek yogurt.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp avocado oil (or other cooking oil)
- 2-3 medium-large sweet or yellow onions, sliced into half moons* (3 cups sliced)
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ½ cup of water (or as needed)
- 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
- 1 cup sour cream (or cream cheese)
- ½ cup Greek yogurt
- ½ tsp worcestershire sauce (or tamari)
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp coarsely ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp sea salt or to taste
- 1 tbsp each finely chopped fresh parsley and chives (plus more for garnish)
- Everything bagel seasoning for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Heat the avocado oil in a large skillet over high heat.
- Add the sliced onions and sea salt to the skillet. Toss to coat well with the oil and cook for 5 minutes on high.
- Lower the heat to medium and continue cooking stirring every 3-5 minutes or so. If you stir the onions too often, they won’t have enough time to caramelize properly. The whole process will take 45-50 minutes.
- At the 30-minute mark, the onions should be reduced and you should be able to see lots of caramelization happening. At this point, the onions start to stick so add a splash of water to deglaze the pan.
- Continue cooking, stirring, and adding more water as needed for another 15-20 minutes.
- The onions are done when they’re golden brown and visibly caramelized. Add the minced garlic for the last 1-2 minutes of cooking.
- Add one last splash of water to get all the bits stuck to the pan and allow the water to evaporate before transferring the onions to a bowl to cool.
- Allow the onions to cool for 10-15 minutes before mixing them with the rest of the ingredients.
- Into a medium bowl add the caramelized onions (reserve 1-2 tablespoons for garnish), sour cream, greek yogurt, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, black pepper, sea salt, parsley, and chives.
- Mix everything together until combined, taste, and adjust the seasoning to taste.
- Serve with chips of your choice (I highly recommend salty truffle potato chips!).
Notes
Serving: The dip is best served cool. If you keep it in the fridge for 1-2 hours, it will thicken up but you can also serve it right away if you don't have time to wait.
Storing: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
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Marta says
I made this onion dip to serve as a starter course before Christmas dinner and it was devoured within minutes of putting it out. I only wish I made a double batch so I could have some to snack on today!
Gloria says
OMG those onions are awesome. You will never want to eat store-bought dip again. I could eat this with a spoon LOL.
Amy Liu Dong says
This is definitely my favorite dip for my snack.
It is so easy and delicious!
Ann says
This dip turned out super delicious! I made it for a friend gathering, but doubled the recipe. The extras, we used as toppings for baked potatoes.
Ashley says
I love french onion dip! I always buy the storebought kind, but the homemade version looks WAY better!!
Kathryn says
I love how this is made from scratch and the yogurt makes this dip extra creamy! Such a perfect dip all year round!
Lori | The Kitchen Whisperer says
French onion dip is my absolute favorite dip! This with a bag of chips and it easily could be dinner. Thank you so much for sharing something truly scrumptious!
Jenny says
This is my favorite dip. Thanks for sharing your lovely recipe. Yay for French Onion flavors.
Hayley Dhanecha says
This french onion dip turned out so good for us, so similar to Indian recipe called onion raita. Can't wait to make ir again.