The Diary of a Displaced Housewife is now Life In Fuchsia…


'The Diary of the Displaced Housewife' is now 'Life in Fuschia'

Friday, April 30, 2010

Perfectly Crunchy Baked Onion Rings


I love fried food! I love the crunch of a well made onion ring or the crisp exterior and softness of the perfect salty French fry. What I do NOT like is frying anything at home. It’s messy and too much of a process. I also like to try to eat healthy when I can. (Please note: I said ‘try’!) So every time I crave something sinful, I try to find a lighter easy-to-make option. That’s how I came across the baked onion ring. Now what kind of person would I be if I didn’t share a great recipe with you? Perfect for a BBQ, lazy Sunday snack or even a rainy day.

Start with a hot plate :)
  
Pile on some crunchy onion rings

Now admire your handiwork, pick up a ring, open your mouth and pop one right in!

Perfectly Crunchy Baked Onion Rings

What you need:
1 1/2 cups Baked potato chips
1/2 cups Breadcrumbs
1 large Egg
1 cup Buttermilk (low fat if available)
1/4 cup All Purpose Flour plus 3 tablespoons extra
1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper/ Chili Powder
Salt
Freshly ground Black Pepper
1 - 2 medium sweet onions, such as a Vidalia
2 – 4 tablespoons Oil

Getting down to business:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line two rimmed baking sheets with foil and pour the oil onto the sheets. Keep aside.
Peel and slice onions into 1/2-inch rounds and separate into rings, keeping only large, whole rings (reserve rest of the onions for other uses). You should come out with about 12 to 14 intact rings. Place the three tablespoons of flour in a re-sealable plastic bag, then add onions, and shake to coat. Keep aside.
In a food processor, pulse baked chips and breadcrumbs until fine crumbs form, then transfer to a flat dish. Add in some salt and chili powder or cayenne pepper. Combine and keep aside.
In another flat dish, whisk together egg, buttermilk, flour, and chili powder or cayenne pepper. Also add in the salt and black pepper.
Pop the baking sheets into the oven and let the oil heat up for a couple of minutes.
Now create an assembly line of the onion rings, egg mixture and breadcrumbs mixture. Dip onion rings in egg mixture (letting excess drip off) and dredge in cornflake mixture; place on a large plate.
Remove the sheets from oven and tilt to coat evenly with oil. Arrange the onion rings on sheet. The hot oil starts the cooking process. Try not to pile too many rings on each other. Aim to spread them out evenly across the sheets.
Bake about 8 minutes and then turn the rings over. Bake again for another 8 minutes or until golden brown. Season with salt as soon as you pull the rings out of the oven.
Serve hot.

To Serve:
These rings are great served hot from the oven with a Creamy Garlic Aioli or some Ranch on the side. If nothing else, good ole ketchup will work as well. Dip Dip Dip and voila!

Notes: 
If you don’t have access to baked chips, use cornflakes.
Use vegetable oil or any oil with a higher smoking point (sunflower, grape seed, etc). Avoid using olive oil.
I stored the leftover rings in the refrigerator and crisped them up in an oven when I needed them.
If you need more of the crumb coating, mix up the chips/ cornflakes and breadcrumbs in a ratio of 3:1. You could even do half cups and pulse them.
If you’re making your own buttermilk, then it needs to be slightly thick.
If you don’t have access to a sweet onion, try blanching a regular red onion in some boiling water for a minute to take the edge off the strong onion flavor.


Modified from Martha Stewart’s and Ellie Krieger’s Oven Fried Onion Rings.

13 comments:

  1. There's no way in hell I can make this! They look so yummy I could eat them off this page though!! :D

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  2. Srmi! Never say never! They're so easy peasy...will make them for you if you come to visit me or if I visit you! :)

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  3. Ok dumb question.. is there anyway i can make this with a micro?

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  4. and o my god i love ur hot plate!

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  5. Hi Wanderlust! Yes, you can make this in the microwave if you have a grilling or brown option. Or first heat up a bit of oil in the microwave (don't set anything on fire!) and then add in the rings. Turn over once and cook again. use a flatish dish. I hope this works!

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  6. Oh and I almost forgot.. I love my hot plate! :P I've even got a Marilyn Monroe... Need to work on expanding the 'hot' plate collection!

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  7. Housie, I like the visit option ;)

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  8. Hello new friend! These look perfectly crunchy and delicious to me...I so wish I had some right now....

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  9. Lovely blog. Simply love these onion rings. They look so crispy :)

    Please email me @ priya.mitharwal@gmail.com as I just read you are from LA and I am also in the same vicinity :)

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  10. @ Belinda - Thank you! I know how addictive and 'cravable' onion rings can be! Thus the healthier version! :)

    @ Priya - Thank you! :) Which part of LA are you in? Is n't it brutally hot today?

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  11. The 'tater chips are really clever idea! I'll try it.

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  12. Hi there Duchess! They really do add some nice crunch. I'll bet the regular crisps instead of the baked ones add even more crunch!

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  13. I have no problem with fried food we get along jsut fine, so next time I make burgers, these little guys are comin' too!

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