French Onion Soup

"French onion soup at Balthazar is a commitment — the onions are cooked until they are caramelized, dark, collapsed. The broth is beef-based, the Gruyere is applied thick, the crouton is inserted at the correct angle so it gets saturated without disintegrating."

"The gratinee is the point. The cheese needs to bubble and brown and pull away from the edges of the crock. This requires a salamander, not an oven — the broiler must be positioned to hit the top of the cheese without melting the interior of the soup."