You are going to LOVE my air fryer onion rings recipe!They are a great appetizer or perfect side dish. They are one of my favorite restaurant side dishes and I love to fix them on game day.
And, thanks to the air fryer, you can now make them at home! It’s so satisfying to be able to make your own homemade onion rings!
We’ve had an air fryer for a while now and I LOVE this thing! Before buying the air fryer we had a traditional oil fryer for deep-fried food. The deep fryer made food taste great but it was a pain to clean and it made the entire house smell like a McDonald’s.
The air fryer, on the other hand,still makes food taste great but with the added bonus of not stinking up the whole house. The air fryer basket and unit itself are so easy to clean too. I love that there is so much less mess with an air fryer. Win-win!
The other day we made this homemade air fryer onion rings recipe and they turned out pretty tasty, so now I’m sharing it with you! This extra crispy onion rings recipe is pretty easy but takes a few minutes to prepare the ingredients and to cut the onion. It’s well worth the work, though! Enjoy!
Air Fryer Onion Rings Recipe
Ingredients
1/2 cup of flour
1 tspof paprika
1 teaspoon salt (divided in half)
1/2 cup of buttermilk
1 egg
2 tbsp of olive oil
1 cup of panko breadcrumbs
1 large yellow onion
cooking spray
Directions
You’ll need three bowls for this recipe. In the first small bowl combine 1/2 cup of flour, 1 tspof paprika, and 1/2 tsp of salt, and stir.
In the second medium bowl mix 1/4 cup of the flour/paprika/salt mixture from the first bowl with 1/2 cup of buttermilk and the egg for the egg wash. Stir well.
Finally, in the third bowl combine 1 cup of panko breadcrumbs with 2 tbsp of olive oil and 1/2 tsp of salt. Stir gently until the oil evenly coats the panko breadcrumbs.
Cut the yellow onion into 1/2 inch thick slices and separateinto individual rings. Taking each ring, dredge them into the flour mixture, then dip them in the buttermilk mixture making sure they’re fully coated, and then dredge them in the panko mixture.
Place your coated rings into your air fryer in a single layer, being sure that the crispy coating doesn’t touch. You may find that you can only fry four or so at a time. Sometimes I’m able to fit the smaller rings inside of the bigger rings.
Fry at 380 degrees for 10 minutes until they are golden brown. You can spray with cooking spray midway through the frying process if necessary.
That’s it! You’re ready to enjoy your crispy air fryer onion rings! Don’t forget to print the recipe card of save it to a board of your favorite air fryer recipes on Pinterest. It’s a tasty snack you’ll want to make again and again.
You’ll need three bowls for this recipe. In the first bowl combine 1/2 cup of flour, 1 tspof paprika, and 1/2 tsp of salt and stir.
In the second bowl mix 1/4 cup of the flour/paprika/salt mixture from the first bowl with 1/2 cup of buttermilk and the egg. Stir well.
Finally, in the third bowl combine 1 cup of panko bread crumbs with 2 tbsp of olive oil and 1/2 tsp of salt. Stir gently until the oil evenly coats the panko breadcrumbs.
Cut the yellow onion into 1/2 inch thick slices and separateinto individual rings. Taking each ring, dredge them into the flour mixture, then dip them in the buttermilk egg mixture making sure they’re fully coated, and then dredge them in the breadcrumb mixture.
Place your coated rings into your air fryer, being sure they don’t touch. You may find that you can only fry four or so at a time. Fry at 380 degrees for 10 minutes. You can spray with cooking spray midway through the frying process if necessary.
Notes
We like using yellow onions for this recipe but you could definitely use red onions, sweet onions (vidalia onion) or white onions as well if you prefer.
We have an air fryer with a tray now instead of just an air fryer basket which makes it easier to cook lots of rings in a single layer at once. If you plan to cook things like onion rings, french fries, and chicken fingers using an air fryer often, it might be worthwhile for you to get an air fryer of this style. I have both types and use each of them a lot.
If you love the flavor of garlic, try adding 1 teaspoon of garlic powder to the dry mixture bowl.
Pair these onion rings with your favorite dipping sauce.
If you don't have panko you can substitute regular breadcrumbs, but I do feel like panko is the best for giving you a nice crispy onion ring.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
These nutritional facts are an estimate and will vary based on the size of your onion.
Did you make this recipe?
Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest
Related Posts
Looking for other great air fryerrecipes? If you love these crunchy onion rings, you’ll also enjoy ourAir Fryer Hushpuppies recipeand ourAir Fryer Sugar Doughnut recipe! They are both great recipes and easy recipes too.
These air fryer onion rings pair great with salmon patties and skillet green beans. Yum!
Make sure you clean the air fryer regularly for the best flavor, best results, and longevity of your small appliance.
Arrange the rings in a single layer in your air fryer basket. Depending on the size of your air fryer, you'll likely need to work in batches. Drizzle the rings generously with oil and air fry at 370°F for 8 to 11 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp. Repeat as necessary until you've air fried all the onion rings.
An equal amount of all-purpose flour and cornstarch provides both structure and crunch to the batter. Cornstarch is a go-to ingredient for many fried foods (think crispy chicken wings), and using it to bolster the crisping power of flour resulted in a thinner, crispier, and sturdier (yet still delicate) breading.
However, a small amount of oil is usually necessary to achieve a crispy texture. A drizzle or a quick oil spray is all you need for restaurant-quality fries and golden brown fried chicken, while other foods don't need any oil, like pizza or leftovers you might reheat.
This is almost worse than having batter that's too thin. Instead of staying light and crisp, an onion ring with too much batter will retain too much internal moisture, and as soon as it comes out of the oil, the batter starts getting soggy.
Spray air fryer basket with olive oil using an oil mister (**do NOT use aerosol cooking spray, as it can damage the inside of the basket**). Working in batches, transfer onion rings to the air fryer. Cook at 375° F for 6-8 minutes. Remove from the basket and continue with the next batch.
You bet! The flour coating gets amazingly crispy in the air fryer, so you get that satisfying crunch without the hassle of breadcrumbs. And the meat inside stays so wonderfully juicy and tender!
To get crispy onions you need to deep fry it in a lot of oil. Sauteing in a shallow pan will result in softened onions as they release their juice slowly and get cooked. Don't add salt as they are frying as it will further draw the moisture out and soften the onions.
Rice flour and cornstarch work particularly well because they fry up crispier than wheat flour. They also absorb less moisture and fat during the frying process, making the products less greasy.
You also want to avoid putting food that has a wet batter, like corndogs or tempura shrimp, in air fryers. Wet batter goes everywhere, and without a proper oil bath the batter won't set, which means it won't be the crispy, fried item you hoped it would be, according to Polak.
Dry the outside of the food properly before you add oil. Do not use too much oil, as this will make the food less crispy and more fattening. Meat or poultry can be lightly brushed with oil or marinated to get the crispiest results.
While it may seem like a pain, soaking the potatoes in hot water for 10 minutes prior to cooking them in the air fryer is essential. The water removes excess starch, allowing the fries to be their crispiest. Instead of soaking them in large bowl of cold water, I like to use hot water to cook the potatoes slightly.
The Instant Vortex Plus 6-Quart Air Fryer has impressed us time and time again as the best air fryer available. It's the right balance of a generous capacity with a manageable overall size, boasts the blasting convection power necessary for crispy results, and, of course, has a user-friendly interface.
Oven Method: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and reheat the onion rings on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper for about 10-12 minutes. Air Fryer Method: Heat the air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and reheat the onion rings for few minutes until they regain their crispy texture.
Optional: Soak onions in ice water for 15 minutes and pat them completely dry before frying. This neutralizes the flavors and brings out a hint of sweetness instead of a harsher bite. It also makes them a bit crunchier. Place cooling racks over a baking sheet next to where you'll be frying.
Recipes that use a wet batter, including fried chicken, will end up being very messy if cooked in an air fryer. This is because there won't be enough hot oil to set the batter, and it will likely drip everywhere rather than forming a crunchy coating.
Nathan's frozen onion rings is my favorite brand. I find they are the best frozen onion rings for the air fryer. My next favorite brand of onion rings is Alexia onion rings. Other popular brands are Red Robin, and Ore Ida onion rings.
In contrast, ensure your oil is piping hot at around 360 to 375 degrees Fahrenheit before dropping in your battered rings. If the oil isn't hot enough, the dough will absorb the oil, creating soggy onion rings that may fall apart.
don't overcrowd the basket – we like to make a lot at once, but you don't want to fill your basket up too much. With the technology of the air fryer, the air needs room to circulate, which helps get things so crispy. While I put a lot in there, I make sure they are evenly spread out so it allows for the air to flow.
Michael says that cornstarch or rice flour in combo with flour will give you the crunchiest batter. Even cake four will cook up crunchier than all-purpose flour because it doesn't have a high gluten level.
These Air Fryer Chicken Wings only take a few minutes to make, but require one KEY ingredient – baking powder! The baking powder reacts with the chicken skin by raising its pH level to create beautiful golden brown and crispy skin.
Oven Method: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and reheat the onion rings on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper for about 10-12 minutes. Air Fryer Method: Heat the air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and reheat the onion rings for few minutes until they regain their crispy texture.
Simply set your air fryer to 350 degrees, then place your leftover fries in a single layer in the fryer basket.Heat them for three to five minutes or until they reach your desired crispiness. Just like with the oven method, make sure you don't crowd the air fryer basket so the fries get nice and crispy.
Introduction: My name is Kelle Weber, I am a magnificent, enchanting, fair, joyous, light, determined, joyous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.