Frizzled Onion Recipes

FRIZZLED ONIONS

Steps:

• Heat oil in a heavy stockpot to 375º F.
• Using a mandoline or vegetable slicer, thinly slice onion into rings.
• Place onion rings in a large bowl and cover with milk.
• In another bowl, mix together flour, salt, black pepper, cayenne, and 1/2 teaspoon of the paprika.
• Drain onions from milk.
• Dredge in flour mixture and shake off excess.
• Deep-fry until golden and crisp, about 2 minutes.
• Drain on paper towels.
• Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 teaspoon of the paprika.

FRIZZLED ONION

Steps:

• Very thinly slice onion lengthwise with slicer.
• Heat 2 inches oil in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat until thermometer registers 340°F, then fry onion in 6 batches, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes per batch (watch closely; onion can burn easily). Quickly transfer each batch with a slotted spoon to fresh paper towels to drain, then sprinkle lightly with salt. (Onion will crisp as it cools.) Return oil to 340°F between batches.

ONION STRINGS

Steps:

• Begin by peeling the onions and slicing very thinly, use a mandoline slicer if you can. Separate the onion slices and place them in a shallow baking dish and pour the buttermilk over the top. Press the onions down so they're submerged as much as possible and let them soak on the counter for at least an hour. If necessary, stir them around a bit halfway through the soaking process.
• In a bowl, combine the flour, salt, black pepper and cayenne, and set aside.
• Pour 1 to 2 quarts canola oil in a pot or Dutch oven. Heat to 375 degrees F, or until a pinch of flour sizzles when sprinkled over the pot.
• Using tongs, remove a handful of onions from the buttermilk and immediately dunk into the flour mixture. Coat the onions in the flour mixture, and then tap them on the inside of the bowl to shake off the excess.
• Plunge the onions in the hot oil. With a spoon, fiddle with them a bit just to break them up, and watch them! They'll be ready to remove from the oil in no time flat.
• When they're golden brown (this should take just a minute or two), remove them from the oil and place on a paper towel-lined plate.
• Repeat with the remaining onion slices and serve immediately.
• Pile these on top of a juicy grilled hamburger - to die for!

CARAMELIZED ONION DIP WITH FRIZZLED LEEKS

Steps:

• Put the onions in a large skillet over medium heat. Cover and cook, stirring infrequently, until the onions are dry and almost sticking to the pan, about 20 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the oil and a large pinch of salt and turn the heat down to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally and adding just enough additional oil to keep them from sticking without getting greasy. The onions are ready when they're dark, sweet and jammy, 40 minutes to 1 hour later.
• Sprinkle with black pepper, stir in the thyme and remove the onions from the heat. When they're cool, fold them into the yogurt and stir in the lemon juice. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then transfer the mixture to a serving bowl. (At this point, you can cover the dip with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days.)
• Wipe or wash out the skillet and put it over medium-high heat. When it's hot, add the remaining 4 tablespoons oil. A few seconds later, add half the leeks, turn the heat up to high and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Use a spatula to turn the leeks over as they cook. Be careful: they will go from not-browned to burnt pretty quickly, and you want to catch them in between those stages, when they're browned and crisp. Transfer the leeks to paper towels to drain and repeat with the remaining leeks, adding more oil to the pan if necessary to keep them from sticking.
• Garnish the onion dip with the crisp leeks and serve immediately with crudités or crackers.