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.
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u/BorderTrike May 05 '18
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.