Onions, cut into rings, dipped into batter, and deep fried.


Moore's, America's largest wholesaler of French fries, has noted that marketing studies show that onion rings are the #1 appetizer ordered by restaurant patrons (R&I Tastes of America, 1999), with adults ages 39-52 being the demographic group that orders them the most. By region, the American West lags behind the rest of the United States in ordering onion rings.

While you can make onion rings from any variety of onion, the restaurant and food industry prefers to use short day varieties developed for their single center, thick rings, sweeter flavor, and lower pungency.

And now, my mother's recipe for THE BEST ONION RINGS EVER. Because you need to know.

Ingredients:


My mom cooks in a Southern way. That is, she doesn't use exact measurements. Play around with the recipe.

Directions:

  1. While you're cutting your onions into rings (about 1/4th inch thick), crack open a beer. Between drinks, separate the layers of onion to make more rings.

  2. In a bowl, mix about 2 cups milk and an egg or 2. Whisk it all together.

  3. In a plastic bag, dump a few cups of flour.

  4. In another plastic bag, add about a cup of flour, a cup of beer, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper, and any other seasonings you like (garlic, onion powder, mustard or tabasco...). Mix 'em up to taste.

  5. Get out your deepest frying pan, skillet, or fry daddy and heat the vegetable oil at 350°-375° F. It's gonna take a few minutes to heat, so take a swig and relax.

  6. Here's the idea: first we dip the rings in flour, then in the egg/milk mixture, then in batter. You can even close the onions in the plastic bag and shake the toppings on, like shake'n bake. Got it? Each layer should thoroughly coat the rings. You might even let them sit for a minute to soak it all in.

  7. Carefully place the battered rings into the pan, frying them to a golden brown. You'll know they're done when they start to "float" in the oil. (about 5 minutes)

  8. Drain the oil from the onion rings and set them to cool.

Onion rings go great with ketchup, horseradish, mustard, and tartar sauce. Try them with your next catfish meal, a big hamburger, or whenever you're in the mood for something greasy and fattening.

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