Creole Onion Rings

This weekend, my mother-in-law bought a huge bag of sweet Georgia Vidalia onions at Costco and decided to pawn some off on us. So guess what we decided to fry up for dinner tonight? You guessed it: onion rings.

Over the past year, I've been working on perfecting my recipe for fried chicken/zucchini/mushrooms/any-other-vegetable-that-tastes-good-fried. These onion rings turned out particularly delicious, so I'd like to share them with you. 

Creole Onion Rings
(Print Recipe)

2 large onions 
1 cup flour
1-2 Tbsp creole seasoning (depending on how spicy you want it)
1/2 Tbsp ground black pepper
1/2 Tbsp salt
2 eggs

Peanut oil (or whatever oil you prefer to fry with)

Slice the onions into roughly 1/2 inch rounds and separate the segments. Mix together the flour and spices in a medium mixing bowl and set aside. Whisk the eggs in a separate bowl. 

Pour enough oil in a frying pan to coat the bottom with a good layer, then preheat over medium heat. Or, you can pour several inches of oil into a deep fryer and pre-heat to 375° F.

One at a time, dip the onion slices in the egg, then coat them in the flour mixture. Fry them until golden brown, a couple minutes on each side. When done, let them drain and cool on a paper towel. These are great by themselves, but you can serve them with ketchup, or ranch dressing, or whatever your favorite dipping sauce happens to be. 

As you can see, the breading turns out thin and crispy on these. If you are used to lots of thick batter on your onion rings, these may take some adjusting. But the seasoning is so, so yummy! Personally, I prefer the thin breading, anyway. Just be aware, this recipe makes a TON of onion rings, so you may want to cut in half if you're making these for a smaller group of people.

I'd also like to make a few notes about ingredients. I am usually not picky when it comes to choosing my ingredients. Some things really don't matter. But I do have some favorites I'd like to recommend for this recipe. First, the Georgia Vidlia onions are super sweet and crunchy. If you find a huge bag at Costco, as my mother-in-law did, buy it! It's totally worth it.

Second, the creole seasoning is what makes this recipe, in my opinion. I discovered it earlier this year and I put it on everything! It adds just a touch of heat and salty goodness to any meat or veggies. I have seen several different versions at several different stores. I went with the Kroger brand, but I'm sure any variant of this seasoning will be delicious.

Lastly, the oil is important for anything you may want to fry. For anything savory, I always try to use peanut oil. The smoke point is high enough that it won't burn unless you have the heat up ridiculously high. It also gives your food a good flavor. If you can't do peanut oil, canola oil is probably the next best. 

Enjoy!