BEER BATTERED ONION RINGS

This weekend I've been making a veritable feast of deep fried goodies. Well it is the bank holiday

after all and quite frankly I deserve a little treat. First on the menu are these fabulous herby beer battered red onion rings. A delicious accompaniment for a steak or fish, chips and mushy peas these herb and breadcrumb circles of joy are super crispy and more importantly super tasty and when they are this simple to make then you really don't have any excuse not to treat yourself! Go on you know you want to!

Let me start by saying that I'm a big red onion fan. I love the sweetness that they have compared to your more common white onion. You can use either but whatever onion you choose make sure it's nice and big so you get those big rings perfect for a battered treat.

For the beer, I redirect you back to my "Boozy Veggie Bites" and recommend to you the "Wild Beer Co". I spoke in that post about their fabulous range of ale's and highly recommend to you again that you order some online to make these onion rings sparkle but if you don't have the time then use a beer that you would be happy to drink yourself. The better the quality of you beer in your better; the more tasty your rings are going to turn out. Whilst I mention the batter, I'll stress about how good using soda water is! It's the first time I've used soda water in a batter and there was a definite improvement in the the crispiness that is achieved in using it. Soda water is so chap to pick up in stores now-a-days but if your doing these rings off the cuff then you can replace it with the same quantity of water, milk or even some more beer if you have it leftover however I can't promise it will be the same if you do!

Breadcrumb time! I've cheated and used some ready made herby breadcrumbs just because it's quicker that way and you can get some good quality versions now that will add that herby goodness to your rings. You can of course blitz up some stale bread in a food processor and make your own by adding in a tbsp or two of freshly chopped or dried herbs for the same effect. You could even mix up the flavor by adding some chili flakes or paprika for a more spicy/smoky ring. 

Lets get too it! Remember that your dealing with super hot oil here so be careful and have a damp tea towel to hand just in case. Invest in a cooking thermometer to get the temperature of your oil to 180 degrees Celsius or if you don't have one to hand then heat your oil and drop in a few breadcrumbs. They should fizz instantly then you know you have your oil hot enough to start frying those onions!

Beer Battered Onion Rings

1 Medium Egg Yolk

 65g Plain Flour

 15g Cornflour

100ml Beer

100ml Soda Water

1 Large Red Onion

Appox. 10 Tbsp Herby Breadcrumbs

1. Begin by placing the egg yolk, plain and cornflour in a bowl and pour the beer and soda water into a jug.
2. Stir together the beer and soda water before slowly pouring into bowl with the flours in batches. Whisk after each addition until a smooth runny batter has formed that can coat the back of a spoon for five seconds. You may not need all the beer and soda later so any left over, give it a little swig! Leave the batter to rest for thirty minutes.
3. Peel and cut the onion into rings and separate each one out ona piece of grease proof paper. Tip out 2 tbsp of the breadcrumbs onto a small plate. 
4. Next heat vegetable oil of around 1- 2 inches in depth to 180 degrees Celsius and give the batter a quick whisk to refresh it.
5. Using tongs, dip a ring into the batter until well coated and then dip the ring into the breadcrumbs until well coated and then place carefully into the oil. Fry for around three minutes until golden brown and then remove from the pan into some kitchen paper to remove the excess oil. 
6. Repeat the process with the rest of the rings. If the plate of breadcrumbs gets to clumpy then discard them and refresh them with 2 more tbsps. Keep adding them into the pan until you have about four on the go and the first one you put in should be finished by the time you place the last one in.

Serve your onions straight away for optimal crispiness. If you leave them lying around for too long they will start to go soft and lose that satisfying crunch you get when you bite through that herby batter into the soft sweet red onion ring inside. The beer in the batter gives a delicious after taste to the rings on your tongue that is just to die for. Serve them with your fish and chips or simply dip them into a sweet chili or sour cream dip for a movie night treat. So much tastier than any ready made shove in the oven variety you will find in your supermarket? You better "Beer"lieve it!