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These hot and crispy French fried onions are made with just three ingredients! Thinly sliced yellow onions soaked in buttermilk, then coated in flour and deep-fried until golden brown.

If you’ve never topped off your cheeseburger or green bean casserole with French fried onions, then you’re doing it wrong! These crispy onions add crunch and flavor to any dish you serve it with. However, these are more than just a topping. Serve it as an appetizer with bacon garlic aioli, ketchup, or on its own cause it’s that good!

Ingredient Notes

Onions – Red, yellow, or Vidalia onions will work for this recipe. I used 4 small yellow onions but you can use 2 large onions instead of 4 small ones.

Buttermilk – If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, use whole milk.

Flour – All-purpose flour works best for this recipe.

How To Make

1. Peel and slice the onions into half-moons.
2. In a large bowl, soak the onions in buttermilk for 15 minutes.
3. While the onions soak, heat some oil in a large skillet to 350 degrees F.
4. Place the onions in a colander and shake off any excess buttermilk.
5. Coat the onions in flour, place them in a sieve, and shake off any excess flour.
6. Fry the onions for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Place the fried onions on a lined plate with a paper towel, season with salt, and enjoy.

Top Tips

• Fry the onions in batches.
• Make sure to shake off any excess buttermilk or flour off the onions.
• Season with salt the second they come out of the oil.
• If the onions are too milky and mushy, add more flour!
• I highly recommend enjoying these French fried onions while they’re hot and crispy.
• Want to use some spices? Feel free to add any spices of your choice to the flour such as garlic powder, lemon pepper seasoning, or Cajun seasoning.

Are These Onion Rings?

No, these aren’t sliced into rings so technically they aren’t onion rings. However, these French fried onions are also known as, crispy straws and onion strings.

What Oil Should I Use?

Any type of frying oil such as canola, vegetable, or peanut oil works.

How Long Do I Fry These For?

It depends, my first batch was cooked in 2 minutes, and my second batch was cooked in 5 minutes because the oil temperature dropped. Don’t be alarmed if your second or third batch doesn’t cook as quickly as the first.

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