The battle between French fries and onion rings ends here! “How?” you might wonder. With one munch of these Crispy Onion Rings, there will be no turning back to the stodgy spuds! The crispy onions get a nice soak in a buttermilk bath to ensure there is flavor down to the core. Then, it’s dunked in a salty, savory coat that when baked, becomes a beautiful, crunchy, golden brown. Dipped in your favorite condiment or seriously, all on its own, Crispy Onion Rings is the reigning champ when it comes to flavor and satisfaction!
Ingredients
- 2 large sweet onions, cut into 1/2-inch slices
- 1 quart of buttermilk, low-fat
- 4 egg whites
- 2/3 cups whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 3/4 cup ground cornmeal
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- nonstick spray, to taste
Directions
Step 1 –In a large dish, place the onion slices and pour the buttermilk on top. The onions should be somewhat submerged and don’t need to be completely covered.
Step 2 –Cover the dish tightly and store it in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.
Step 3 –Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Step 4 –Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Step 5 –In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites. Set aside.
Step 6 –In a large shallow dish, mix the flour, cornmeal, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and paprika together until combined.
Step 7 –Transfer each onion from the buttermilk, and dip them into the egg whites.
Step 8 –Immediately submerge the onion into the bread crumb mixture, mixing it around to ensure it is coated well. If the bread crumbs won’t adhere, dip the onion into the egg whites and then the bread crumbs again.
Step 9 –Repeat this process for each of the onions.
Step 10 –Place each of the breaded onions on the prepared baking sheet in a single layer.
Step 11 –Spray each of the breaded onions with the nonstick spray to ensure the breading will bake onto the onion.
Step 12 –Bake each batch for 15 minutes.
Step 13 –Carefully transfer the baking sheet from the oven and flip each of the coated onions using tongs.
Step 14 –Spray the other side with the nonstick spray.
Step 15 –Continue baking the onion rings until they reach your desired level of brownness and crispiness, about 15 minutes.
Step 16 –Allow the baked onion rings to cool for 10 minutes.
Step 17 –Serve.
