Recipe: Vicki Ravlich-Horan | Images: Ashlee DeCaires
I’m a sucker for a good onion ring – battered, definitely not crumbed. The beer in this recipe conveniently means there is half a bottle spare for the cook—although I am not endorsing drinking and frying! You can swap the beer for sparkling water which will give you just as light a batter although not quite the same flavour. Not essential, but a beautiful addition to the batter, especially if you are making these just to munch on with a beer, is a teaspoon of cumin seeds.
1 cup self-raising flour
½ tsp salt
½–1 tsp cumin seeds (optional)
1 cup beer (any will do although I prefer a lager)
2–3 large onions
oil for frying
Place the flour, salt and cumin seeds (if adding) in a bowl. Slowly whisk in the beer to form a smooth batter.
Carefully peel the onions, trying to avoid cutting into the layers. Cut the onions into ½ cm rings. Separate the rings, adding the large/medium ones to the batter. The innermost rings can be saved and used next time you need onion.
Heat the oil to 180°C and carefully drop the batter-covered onion rings into the oil. This is best done using tongs and in batches. Also make sure you allow excess batter to fall off the rings before you place them in the oil. Cook the rings until golden, turning them at least once. Once golden, remove from the oil and place on paper towels to soak up a little of the excess oil. Season with additional salt if desired and serve.
