Soda battered onion rings~

This is my first recipe post.

I actually love to cook. I guess this is also 1 of the reason why Walter loves me..hehe. Well, my body would attest to this since i have been big all my life...LOL

I like experimenting with different ingredients to produce a good recipe. I'm the type of person that doesn't really follow recipes that much. I often times put some twists on the classic recipe. Lately i have been whipping out a lot of food since i'm not able to go out.... no-bake cheesecake, pasta putanesca with my very own sun-dried tomatoes, vegetable stew, etc.

After i read Sis Madz's onion rings post, it made me crave for onion rings that the next day i decided to drop by the grocery store to whip out my own version of onion rings. I used to love the beer battered onion rings (but i really don't drink beer, mind you..hehe), but since i'm not sure how the rest of my family would like to know that i used beer, i decided to do a different variation to the classic beer batter recipe that is kid-friendly.

I wasn't able to find my camera in time when i was making the batter.. but anyway, it's very easy. You just dump everything on a bowl then mix it altogether. Feel free to add your favorite seasoning.. you can even buy those ready made powder mixes & substitute it for onion, garlic & cayenne pepper if you don't have it.

2 cups of flour (or just 1 cup depending on how much batter you'll be needing)
1 tsp garlic powder (if you want your onion rings to taste more garlicky then add more)
*1 tsp onion powder (this will enhance the taste of the real onions more )
*1/2 tsp cayenne powder (if you want it more spicy then feel free to add more)
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp baking powder (this would help make the flour rise)
*optional

Then this is when the fun begins
^_~

Pop open a fizzy beverage (in my case i just used Sprite) then pour it on the mixture instead of water.
 I think the key to making a good flour-based onion ring batter is to use a fizzy beverage.

It gives it that nice texture compare to plain ol' water. Use a beverage that is clear,ok? Don't use a cola for it would look disastrous. You can go for soda water instead if you don't like it sweet, just mix a little water on the batter so that it won't burn that easily when you fry it. Diluting the soda with a little bit of water would decrease the risk of burning it.

As for the measurement, it depends on how you want your batter to be. If you prefer a thick batter, then you can probably use 1 cup of soda+water mixture (1/4 water & 3/4 Sprite) to 1 1/2 cup of flour mixture, if you prefer a more liquid-y batter then add more liquid. Just adjust the volume of liquid to your dry ingredients. In my case, i prefer a thick batter for i like biting in something that has more texture, plus this batter really compliments the sweetness of the onions. Just whisk the mixture until everything is well blended & let it rest for at least 15 minutes.

Make sure that your oil is really hot when you fry it or else it would just absorb the oil. Anyway, it's always like that... when frying make sure that the oil is hot to avoid absorbing too much oil. When the sides are a bit brown then it's time to turn it. Don't let it stay in the oil for too long for if this burns this will taste horrible. You need to make sure that you fry it until it turns golden brown. If you fry it too much it would taste horrible because the liquid base is sweeter.

I'm sure the kids will love this!
Trust me in on this.. my little brother who hates onions ate this onion rings.

If you want to try the classic beer battered onion rings, then just substitute the soda+water mixture to beer. The batter of these rings were made from beer so you'll see that it's a bit pale compare to the soda one.

The thing about using beer as the liquid is that it makes the batter taste a bit bland but brings out the sweetness of the onion way better than using water. I just haven't found the perfect beer for onion rings yet. If you do, then tell me.

note:

• This is actually easier to prepare than using breadcrumbs & eggwash mixture because you only have to dump the onions on the batter then just fish them out 1 by 1 as you cook them
• If you want this to have more crunch then feel free to add bread crumbs just before frying.
• You are the king (or queen) of your own. Put in any kind of flavorings you wanted.onion,garlic & cayenne is just basic..u can try others too..maybe even put herbs that would agree on onion. experiment!
• It's possible to make the perfect onion ring shape by using batter, just make sure that you use a deep frying pan full of oil. It would decrease the risk of the batter spreading out ruining the perfect shape compare to frying it in shallow frying pan. Plus you don't have to basically turn the onions since it is completely submerged in the oil so you're sure that it is being cooked evenly.

You like onion rings?
Care to share your recipe?

Jaa~!
^_^