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Fried Onion Rings

Source of Recipe


From "The Best Recipe: American Classics"



List of Ingredients



• 1 cup buttermilk
  
• 1 tsp hot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco
  
• 1 tsp sugar
  
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
  
• 2 tsp baking powder
  
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper
  
• 1 tsp salt
  
• 1½ tsp ground black pepper
  
• 2 large sweet onions, such as Vidalia
  
• 3 cups peanut oil
  






Instructions



1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position, set a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet, place the baking sheet in the oven, and heat the oven to 250° F.
   
   
2. With a fork, combine the buttermilk, hot pepper sauce, and sugar in a medium bowl until the sugar dissolves. Using a clean fork, combine the flour, baking powder, cayenne, salt and pepper in a shallow baking dish. Peel and cut the onions into ¼-inch-thick slices. Separate the onion slices into rings. Dip the rings in the buttermilk and shake off the excess liquid. Dredge the rings in the flour mixture, shake off the excess, and gently place the rings on a second wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Repeat until all the rings are coated. Overlap the rings, if necessary.
   
   
3. Line a large plate with a double layer of paper towels. Meanwhile, heat the oil to 400° over medium-high heat in a large, 8-quart heavy-bottomed Dutch oven with a diameter of approximately 12 inches.
   
   
4. Add the onions to form a single layer on the oil's surface and cook until golden brown, no more than 3 minutes. (Oil temperature should not dip below 375° F.) Using tongs, transfer the onions to the paper towel-lined plate. Let stand 2 minutes to drain, then carefully transfer to the rack in the warm oven.
   
   
5. Replace the paper towels on the plate. Return the oil to 400° and fry the remaining onions, transferring them to the paper towel-lined plate to drain, then to the wire rack in the oven for each batch. Serve onion rings hot from the oven.
   
   Serves 4