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French Onion Pasta Bake

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Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Calories: 519kcal
Servings: 6 People
Metric - Imperial

Ingredients

  • 60 g Unsalted Butter
  • 10 ml Olive Oil
  • 1 kg Brown (Yellow) Onions Sliced
  • 3 Garlic Cloves Minced
  • 2 tbsp Plain Flour All Purpose
  • 3 g Thyme Fresh or Dried
  • 15 g Brown Sugar
  • 250 ml Dry White Wine
  • 750 ml Beef Stock
  • Salt & Pepper

Pasta & Cheese

  • 500 g Penne or Rigatoni
  • 200 g Gruyère Cheese Grated
  • 100 g Mozzarella Cheese Grated
  • 50 g Parmesan Cheese Grated

Method

  • Slice the onions into thin half-moons. Mince the garlic. Grate the cheeses and set aside.
  • Melt the butter with olive oil in a large heavy pot. Add the onions and salt. Cook slowly over medium-low heat for 30–35 minutes, stirring often, until golden brown. Halfway through, add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
  • Sprinkle over the flour and thyme and stir, and cook for 2 minutes. (For gluten-free: use rice flour, or add cornstarch slurry later.)
  • Add brown sugar and cook for 1 minute. Deglaze with the wine or stock, scraping the base of the pot. Reduce by half.
  • Add the beef stock and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes until glossy and slightly thickened—season generously with cracked black pepper.
  • Cook the rigatoni in salted water until just under al dente. Reserve some pasta water before draining.
  • Toss the pasta with the onion sauce, loosening with reserved water until evenly coated.
  • Transfer to a greased baking dish. Top with Gruyère, mozzarella, and parmesan in layers.
  • Bake at 200°C (400°F), or 180°C fan (350°F fan), for 20 minutes until bubbling and golden. Rest for 5 minutes before serving. Dig in.
Chef's Tips
Give the onions the full 30–35 minutes over medium-low heat, stirring often rather than constantly walking away — this is a proper French onion caramelisation, and rushing it with higher heat will brown them unevenly instead of building that deep, sweet flavour.
Let the flour and thyme cook out for the full 2 minutes before the wine goes in, as written — this is a roux step, and skipping it leaves the sauce with a raw, floury taste instead of properly thickening.
Toss the pasta through the sauce off the heat, loosening with reserved pasta water until it's evenly coated but still a little loose — it'll continue to thicken and reduce further in the oven, so a sauce that looks right in the pot will tighten up more once baked.
Storage & Reheating
Refrigerate for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to 3 months, in an airtight container — baked pasta dishes like this generally hold up well frozen.
Reheat in the oven at 180°C (350°F) for 15–20 minutes to bring the cheese topping back to golden and bubbling, or in the microwave for 2–3 minutes if you're short on time. Thaw frozen portions in the fridge overnight before reheating.
Serving 400gCalories 519kcalCarbohydrates 67gProtein 25gFat 22gSaturated Fat 12gPolyunsaturated Fat 2gMonounsaturated Fat 7gCholesterol 67mgSodium 824mgPotassium 448mgFiber 6gSugar 11.4gVitamin A 244IUVitamin C 13mgCalcium 643mgIron 2mg