Blooming Onion
Ingredients
Dipping Sauce:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon ketchup
2 tablespoons cream-style horseradish sauce
1/3 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
1 pinch ground black pepper
1/3 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Blooming Onion:
1 egg
1 cup milk
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/3 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1 large sweet onion
3/4 cup vegetable oil for frying
Directions
1. To make sauce: In a medium bowl, combine mayonnaise, ketchup,
horseradish, 1/3 teaspoon paprika, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon
oregano, a dash ground black pepper and cayenne pepper; mix well.
Keep sauce covered in refrigerator until needed.
2. To make the batter: In a medium bowl, beat egg and add milk. In a
separate bowl, combine flour, salt, cayenne pepper, paprika, ground
black pepper, oregano, thyme and cumin; mix.
3. To slice onion: slice 1 inch off of the top and bottom of the onion and
remove the papery skin. Use a thin knife to cut a 1 inch diameter core
out of the middle of the onion. Now use a very sharp, large knife to
slice the onion several times down the center to create 'petals': First
slice through the center of the onion to about three-fourths of the way
down. Turn the onion 90 degrees and slice it again in an X across the
first slice. Keep slicing the sections in half, very carefully until the
onion has been cut 16 times. Do not cut down to the bottom of the
onion. (The last 8 slices will be difficult, be careful).***
4. Spread the 'petals' of the onion apart. To help keep them separate
you could plunge the onion into boiling water for 1 minute and then
into cold water.
5. Dip the onion into the milk mixture and then coat it liberally with the
flour mixture. Again separate the petals and sprinkle the dry coating
between them. Once you're sure the onion is well-coated, dip it back
into the wet mixture and into the dry coating again. This double-
dipping ensures you have a well-coated onion because some of the
coating will wash off when you fry the onion.
6. Heat oil in a deep fryer or deep pot to 350 degrees F (175 degrees
C). Make sure you use enough oil to completely cover the onion
when it fries.
7. Fry the onion right side up in the oil for 10 minutes or until it turns
brown. When the onion has browned, remove it from the oil and let it
drain on a rack or paper towels. Open the onion wider from the center
so that you can put a small dish of the dipping sauce in the center.
*** It is very important that AFTER the cuts are completed, breading starts ASAP.
Reason being is that if you want before frying…. Some of the outside petals
will start to wilt away from the main onion body. The wilting will go away once
you fry the onion and petals will return to the main body. You can do a single or
double dip for the batter. It is entirely optional which way you go.
