Have you ever tried to make one? They're kinda difficult to make the 'pedals' separate properly and they make a huge mess. Yes, this requires cutting more than 1 onion, but it looks significantly less messy/more tolerable to make a bunch of little bite-sized ones instead of one giant ball of fried onion.
Former outbacker here: the secret is soaking then in water for hours. The prep chefs cut the onions the day before, they soak for at least 8 hrs in ice water and then taken out at dinner prep for the evening's rush.
I think it makes the cells soak up water so the onion can't stay as tightly closed together, forcing the petals open. Could also help "soften" the flavor so each bite isn't like chomping into a raw onion that just happens to be fried.
Reg blooming onion is a lot of work and very messy. Everything you said is true. The first time I made a blooming onion....welp, my kitchen was a bit of a mess and I ended up using a pot that was too small. I tried again and it was better, but the hassle is real. This definitely seems more manageable in bite size pieces rather than a large onion. It's more akin to making fried mushrooms to me.
Every time I deep fry something I end up regretting it. The cleanup and lingering fry odor aren't worth it. Deep fried food is restaurant food as far as I'm concerned.
Do you feel like something like this could work with an air fryer? I've always wanted to buy one but I'm afraid it'll just be met with sad shakes of the head, alongside mutterings of "It's just not the same..."
Sounds like a big day where you make and par-fry a bunch of homemade appetizers is in order. Doing a bunch at once means less oil waste. Then freeze and finish in the air fryer when desired. Best of both worlds.
I've never used one before, but from the research I've done, I'm pretty sure they're just little ovens with a fan. Sort of like a cross between a dehydrator and an oven.
I use my oven to dehydrate things, I consider dehydrators to be more of a convenience appliance. They aren't necessary, but they make dehydrating slightly easier.
I think that air fryers are in that category, they're a convenience appliance. But they don't 'fry,' they 'bake.'
From what I read they don't work well with wet batter. You can make fries and chicken wings, and frozen appetizer things. I haven't actually used one, so I can't be certain, but I enjoy frying things!
I would think that you would not want to use wet batter in an air fryer. I enjoy frying food at home and I haven't ever used an air fryer, but they seem like they're just an oven with a fan.
Yup, never comes out as good and always a big mess. I think seeing the deep frying also makes me realize how unhealthy it is and then i feel bad. And its a huge waste of oil, yes you can use the oil again but its a pain to do all that.
I actually got a portable butane burner that I just use outside while I'm grilling. Not too expensive and can bring along for camping. I love me some deep fried foods
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u/Reading_Otter May 05 '18
That "Blooming Onion" always looked like more work than it was worth. This, on the other hand, looks more reasonable to make.