How to Make Gigantic Cheese and Chive Onion Rings Without a Deep Fryer

This may be the very best use of beer batter ever! The chives are the perfect liaison between the cheddar and onion flavors. The only thing you really need with these is. . . more beer!

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• FOR THE BASIC BATTER:
• 1 cup self-rising flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp white pepper
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup of beer
• FOR THE CHEESE AND CHIVE ONION RINGS
• 1 cup (4 oz) finely shredded cheddar cheese (I use Tillamook Sharp)
• 2 Tbsp freeze-dried chives (or 3 Tbsp fresh minced chives)
• 2 cups Basic Batter (made with beer)
• Oil for frying
• 1 very large yellow onion, cut and separated into 3/4 inch rings

1. 

   Mix the cheese and chives into the batter. Heat 1/2 to 3/4 inches oil in a heavy skillet to 375 degrees.

2. Dip an onion ring into the batter, coating thickly. Lay it gently into the oil and cook until golden, turning once. Remove and drain on paper towels.

3. Repeat with remaining rings. You can do 2-3 at a time depending on the size of your skillet, but take care not to crowd the pan or let the temperature drop too much, or the rings will turn out greasy.

4. Variations & Serving Suggestions:
   
   To get a crunchy/toasty coating, dredge the battered rings in panko bread crumbs before frying. Finely crushed pretzels might be a winner, too.
   
   Horseradish cheddar, pepper jack, or swiss can be substituted for the cheddar.
   
   My best serving suggestion? Three words: Thick. Juicy. Steak.

Tips & Warnings

• I used yellow onions and Vidalias in these recipes and they both produced fine results. Use the biggest onions you can find (there's no such thing as too big!) and cut them 3/4 of an inch thick. Don't worry about the onion being 'raw' or too strong: by the time the coating cooks, the onion will be mellow and tender (while still holding its shape.)
• If you want to fit more in your skillet or fryer, you can break the onion slices into large chunks and make jumbo-sized Onion Chips (a favorite in Eastern PA); batter, dredge, and fry them the same as rings.
• Some of the proportions will be approximate depending on the size of the onions you use, how much you choose to coat them, how spicy or sweet, etc. Let your own tastes be your guide and feel free to improvise and experiment.
• The Basic Batter Recipe creates a thinnish, crispy coating which is very nice on its own, but it's really just a jumping off point for imagination...feel free to come up with your own variations. :)

Resources

• See More eHow Articles From HuggingtheCoast
• Hugging the Coast: A Celebration of Coastal Life and Food
• Enjoy More of Doug DuCap's Original Recipes!

[akchrist]

on 6/29/2008 Mouthwatering!

[Hapworth]

on 6/29/2008 I love onion rings. These sound fantastic!

[mshurt]

on 6/27/2008 This looks sinfully delicious!!Thanks for the REAL LIFE pics!