Objectively speaking, french onion dip is the best dip. It's even better when you make it at home, and fortunately, there's an easy hack to do that: Lipton onion soup mix. In fact, I'm not sure I've ever actually seen anyone make french onion soup with Lipton onion soup mix. It's a flavorful short cut for dozens of other dishes, similar to dropping a beef bouillon cube into a sauce though, which makes it a great thing to keep in your kitchen cabinet.
Lipton first introduced its onion soup mix in 1952, when convenience foods were growing in popularity. Instead of spending hours in the kitchen, women (especially women who worked outside the home and still did the cooking) started to rely more on cans and powders to make cooking family meals easier and faster. Using dehydrated onions and onion powder meant less time peeling and chopping, and that's always a good thing.
Lipton rebranded the soup mix to "Recipe Secrets" in the early '90s, reflecting what the company knew home cooks actually used the mix for. They also added several new flavors to the Lipton soup mix, including beefy onion, onion mushroom, and golden onion, along with vegetable and savory herb with garlic mixes.
What is in Lipton Onion Soup Mix?
Onion flakes and onion powder, certainly, but also salt, sugar, cornstarch, soy sauce, caramel color, maltodextrin, corn syrup, yeast extract, and a couple of other ingredients no one but chemists can pronounce like disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate. Yes, it's pretty high in sodium, but it's also meant to be combined with other ingredients for multiple servings (each packet makes eight servings, which granted, no one ever ate just one serving of french onion dip).
Most of the soup mixes no longer include MSG (monosodium glutamate), though double check the box to be sure the flavor you get doesn't have it.
What Can You Make with Onion Soup Mix?
What can't you make with Lipton onion soup mix? Your very own classic onion dip is super easy: a carton of sour cream and a packet of soup mix. Need a veggie dip? Add your choice of dip mix to hummus. Meatloaf? Add the dry onion soup mix right into the meat.
If your family favorite is pot roast, add the Lipton Recipe Secrets soup mix right into the slow cooker along with the meat and you've got dinner. Pick a casserole and add your choice of soup mix for extra flavor. For a fun appetizer, make a three-bean salsa using the Savory Herb with Garlic Soup Mix.
If you're looking for new favorite recipe ideas, Lipton has a ton of them on their website. Have fun trying them all!
