Air Fried Onion Rings
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Air Fried Onion Rings are crispy, full of flavor, and fun to make! Ready in about 20 minutes, perfect for a side dish or appetizer.
This has been one of my favorite air fryer recipes to make yet. There’s nothing better than a perfectly cooked onion ring – crispy coating covering a tender onion slice – yum!
I love the thought of ditching the deep frying, but sometimes you have to wonder if it will taste the same. In this case, we have fallen in love with air fryer onion rings and vow to never deep fry these again.
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Onion rings are one of those things that if you love them, you know it’s hard to find a decent batch. Most restaurant-style onion rings tend to be soggy, or the breading is falling off and you are eating the onions separately.
So that’s what prompted us to try our hand at an air fryer version. I know sometimes cooking can be a drag, but these were a blast to make. One reason is that they are so quick and easy, which you know I love.
Ingredients for Air Fried Onion Rings
Onion – we recommend using the sweet variety and they seem to work the best. Choose from Vidalia, Walla Walla, or Peruvian.
Flour – all-purpose
Spices: paprika, garlic powder, salt, black pepper
Eggs
Milk – buttermilk is great but you can use whole milk if that’s what you have on hand.
Breadcrumbs – panko is our favorite because it’s so crunchy.
Dipping sauces for serving
Can I Use a Non-dairy Milk?
It’s possible, however, we haven’t tested this recipe with a non-dairy option. If you decide to switch things up, leave us a comment and let us know how they turned out.
Step by Step Instructions to Make Air Fried Onion Rings
Start by peeling and slicing the onion into ½ inch rings and separate.
Then set up your dredging station by adding your flour and seasonings in one bowl, the whisked eggs and milk in the next, and panko crumbs in the last.
Dip the onion rings (use a fork for less mess) into the flour mixture. Make sure they are coated well. After shaking off the excess flour, dip them into the egg mixture. Next press them into the panko crumbs until they are completely covered.
Once your air fryer has preheated to 350 degrees, add your breaded onion rings to the basket in a single layer. If you can fit smaller rings into the larger rings without them touching, you can cook more at a time.
Spritz with a little oil and cook for 8 minutes. Flip the onion rings halfway through and mist with a little more oil.
Serve immediately with your favorite dipping sauce.
If you need to keep them warm while you are baking batches, place cooked rings on a baking sheet and put them in the oven at a low temperature.
Help, The Batter Keeps Falling Off!
If you find that your batter is falling apart before you have time to air fry your onion rings, this handy trick should fix that problem. Place the battered rings in the freezer for about 20 minutes before cooking them. This allows everything to firm up.
More Air Fryer Recipes You Will Enjoy:
- 20 Minute Air Fried Chicken Tenders {Breaded}
- Irresistible Air Fryer Meatballs
- Air Fryer Cauliflower
**Pin the Air Fried Onion Rings Recipe for Later**
Air Fried Onion Rings
Ingredients
- 1 large sweet onion
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons milk, whole or buttermilk
- 2 cups panko breadcrumbs
- Dipping sauces
Instructions
- Peel and slice the onion into ½ inch rings and separate slices.
- Set up a dredging station using 3 medium shallow bowls:· In bowl #1, add flour and seasonings and whisk together.· Whisk together eggs and milk in the 2nd bowl.· Place panko breadcrumbs in the 3rd bowl.
- Using a fork, dip the onion rings into the flour mixture, making sure to completely coat them. Shake off excess flour.
- Next dip rings into the egg mixture and turn to completely coat.
- Transfer the rings to the breadcrumbs, pressing into the breadcrumbs to get them to stick to the onion rings.
- Preheat the air fryer to 350 F.
- Place a single layer of onion rings into the air fryer basket, making sure they don’t touch. You can place smaller rings inside larger ones if they don’t touch. Spritz the onion rings with a light coating of oil.
- Cook at 350 F for 8-10 minutes, flipping the rings & spritzing with more oil half way through the cooking time.
- Transfer to a baking sheet and keep warm in the oven if needed.
Notes
- If the batter falls off the onion rings, freeze the battered rings for 20 minutes prior to cooking.
- Sweet onions work best: Vidalia, Walla Walla, Peruvian.
- Store leftovers in airtight container in refrigerator for 2-3 days. Reheat in the air fryer at 350 degrees F for 2-4 minutes.
Nutritional Estimate
Nutritional information is provided as a reference, using an online calculator. We recommend verifying the information independently for accuracy.
