Fried onion rings. So bad for you. So irresistible. Like biscuits, though, tastes fall into two camps: thick or thin. Some places, like the Blue Crab at the lakefront, can’t decide, so they put out a very good version of medium thickness. But this seems noncommittal to us.
Let us dispense at once with frozen onion rings, which unlike french fries which can be deceptive, a frozen onion ring is immediately apparent. Under a thick crust is mashed onion product. We are instantly suspicious of any large circle of fried stuff. Any place offering onion rings should be cutting their own.
The very best version of these is found only at the Cool Water Ranch, if we may brag. Passionate about this food item, we have perfected a beer-battered thin onion ring, and will share our secrets below. If you don’t want to make a gigantic mess in your kitchen, have to dispense with a greasy sludge at the end of this road, and would prefer your hands not smell of onion, let a restaurant do it.
If you’re going the restaurant route, the best we’ve encountered is at the Crabby Shack in Madisonville. These are very thin and lightly battered rings of onion. And because onions are so cheap and, well, large, there is no such thing as a small order. (Remember the onion mum rage?)
To be honest, sometimes these onion rings can be a little greasy, depending on who is in the kitchen. Maybe because they are so thin? Runner-up Blue Crab is always greaseless. But if thin is your Holy Grail, it’s the Crabby Shack.
Crabby Shack Seafood and Po-Boys
305 Covington St Madisonville 70447
985-845-2348
Sun-Th 11am-8:30pm
Friday and Saturday till 9pm
Crabbyshackandpoboys.com
Recipe for Beer Battered Onion RIngs
1 qt canola oil
1 large onion, preferably yellow
2 eggs
½ cup beer
¼ cup buttermilk
4 cups all-purpose flour
Creole seasoning
Salt
1.Beat the eggs in a bowl, then add remaining wet ingredients and beat it all together.
2. Put 3 cups of flour in a plastic bag and add creole seasoning and salt, to your taste. The creole seasoning gets lost in the flour, so be more generous with it than you might be inclined to be. Close the bag and shake that mixture to blend seasonings. The last cup pf flour will be added to the bag as you continue adding more onion slices to the bag with each new batch.
3. Slice onions to your preferred thickness. We almost shave ours.
4. Drop a handful of onion slices into the wet ingredients and cover completely.
5. Move these to the bag of seasoned flour and coat generously..
6. Drop one tester into the pot of oil you’ve heated to 375 degrees. If it comes up to surface immediately, it’s ready. Drop in coated onions a handful at a time and watch carefully. They will cook in minutes.
7. Skim out and drop on a pile of paper towel. Remove when drained.
