Name: Cajun Breaded Onion Rings
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 1 h 45 min
Ingredients: 2 large white or yellow onions peeled and sliced into rings; 1 tbsp of black pepper; 2 tsp of salt; 2 tbsp of Cajun seasoning; 1 tbsp of chipotle or chilli flakes (optional); 250 g of gluten-free breadcrumbs ( and vegan if needed); 180 g of gluten-free plain flour (without xanthan gum); 60 g of cornflour; 1 tsp of baking powder; 250 ml of sparkling water; 2 tbsp of plain flour

You either love them or hate them but they are an absolute favourite side. Whether you have them as a snack, part of a BBQ or with a meal, to me they are delicious. They are either battered or coated in breadcrumbs. For these, I have added Cajun spices to the breadcrumbs

These onion rings are

Crispy
Delicious
Juicy
Moreish
Crunchy
Spicy

These are so good it is hard to just only eat a few. These can be either deep fried or for a healthier option they can be cooked in an air fryer, oven or an Acti fryer with equally good results.

Adding the Cajun flavour to the breadcrumbs also adds a bit of heat for those who like things a little bit spicy. You could up the spice level a little more by adding some chilli flakes to the breadcrumbs

Serve a basket of these and some dips your guests will be more than happy.

Ingredients needed

Breadcrumbs

These depend on what you need to avoid. For me I needed them to be both gluten-free and vegan. You could use panko crumbs if you prefer.

Onions

For this recipe I would suggest you use large onions, too big and the onion rings become too big as well. In the summer a good onion to use is Vidalia, Walla Walla or Maui. You need white or yellow onions. Red onions are much milder in flavour so best avoided.

Spices

I used a Cajun spice but you could also use southern fried spice, just check the labels. I make my spices, this way I know what is in them and it is so quick.

Sparkling water

Using carbonated drinks in the batter gives an airy texture and produces that wonderful crisp texture. You could substitute this with vegan and GF beer, soda water or tonic water. You could also if you wish use plain water but bubbles are better.

The above onion rings were baked in an air fryer

I use my own Cajun Spice mix or you could add any commercial spice mix. Just make sure you check the ingredients. I will leave you a link below to my mix. It keeps for a few months in an airtight jar.

Cajun Spice Mix

Cajun Breaded Onion Rings

Author: theglutenfreeveganalchemist Cooking Method:Air Fried Cuisine:American Courses:Sides Recipe Keys:onion rings, vegan sides, gluten free side

Difficulty:BeginnerPrep time: 30 minutesCook time: 10 minutesRest time: minutesTotal time:1 hour 45 minutesServings: servingsCalories: kcal Best Season:Available

Description

One of the most popular sides, they can be fried or breaded.

Instructions

Once you slice the onions into rings then place them into a bowl of cold water and leave them to soak for 30 minutes. This dilutes the sulphur content so removing the pungent raw taste and smell.
Combine the ingredients for the breadcrumb coating in a large bowl and then place half of it in another bowl. This can get a little messy making this recipe so it is good to have a second clean bowl of the breadcrumb mix for the second onion.
Drain the onions and pat them dry and then lay them onto some kitchen roll, once dry then toss them in the 2 tbsp of plain flour.
Make the batter by mixing the flour, baking powder and cornflour with the sparkling water. Whisk this until free from lumps. It should be a fairly thick consistency, thick enough to coat the onion rings. You may need to add a little or less of the water.
Using 2 forks dip a ring into the batter, tapping gently to lose any excess batter and then into the breadcrumb mix, pressing down on each side until they are fully coated and place onto a lined tray singularly. Repeat this until all of them have been coated. Once the breadcrumbs get a little sticky due to the batter just switch to the clean bowl.
Place the tray flat into the freezer and leave in there for at least 30 minutes. This step helps the breadcrumbs adhere to the onions. Once they are frozen you can then either cook them or store them in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. I normally make double the quantities.
To cook them you can either deep fry them in small batches in hot vegetable oil for around 4-5 minutes or until golden brown in colour

Notes

You could add any spice mix to your onion rings such as southern fried spice. Whatever is your favourite.
Make sure you check your flour does not contain xanthan gum. This would result in a very thick lumpy batter.

Keywords:Onion Rings, vegan sides, gluten free sides

If you make this, don’t forget to tag me on twitter as @veganalchemist1 or my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/thegfveganalchemist. I love seeing your versions of the recipes. I would love to hear your comments too.

Cajun Spiced Breaded Onion Rings