Take a trip to the Outback in your own kitchen with this homemade, super easy recipe for blooming onion bites!
These petals have all of the flavor of our favorite blooming onion but the individual pieces are easier to cook (and eat) at home. Make a batch just in time for the big game or movie night— we even included the recipe for the sauce!
What is a Blooming Onion?
A blooming onion is an onion that is cut into wedges (most of the way through) and battered and deep-fried. Think of it as a big huge onion ring.
While we love ordering this appetizer to share with a crowd at a restaurant, they can be large and difficult to handle at home.
We love cutting the onion into individual petals:
- they’re easier to cut with no special tools required
- they’re easier to deep-fry and don’t require as large of a pot of oil
- we love how the entire strip of onion is evenly coated and crispy
- they’re great to serve a crowd, it’s easier for people to grab a few petals rather than trying to pull off of the big onion
Ingredients and Variations
Fresh sweet onions are coated in a seasoned batter and then deep-fried in oil and served with its own special sauce.
ONIONS Red onions have a mellow flavor while yellow onions are far more pungent. We think the best choice is sweet onions like Walla Walla.
BATTER Flour, egg, and milk create the perfect crispy batter coating.
SEASONINGS This recipe has a long list of seasonings and they add great flavor. Feel free to swap them out with your favorite seasoning mixes from taco seasoning to cajun seasoning.
Oil for Frying
We like to use an oil that has a high smoke point like canola oil, which means it can reach the perfect temperature (~400°F) that results in a quick cook and a crispy exterior.
Peanut oil is a great choice with a really high smoke point and vegetable oil will work too! Just be sure to make sure the oil is heated to the right temperature before frying or else the battered onions will simply absorb the oil and become soft.
How to Make Blooming Onion Bites (overview)
Blooming onions are so easy to make and you’ll love the flavor and crunch!
- Prepare the dip pre recipe below and set aside (this can be done up to 48 hours in advance).
- Cut onions into wedges. Prepare the breading mixture and toss onions to coat.
- Dip in the egg mixture, then back into breading mixture (flour/egg/flour).
- Deep fry in oil until browned and crispy. Drain and serve with dipping sauce.
How to Make Blooming Onion Sauce
Our sauce is deliciously creamy and it’s almost like an aioli dip. Delicious with fries, too, and super simple to make:
- Mix all of the dipping sauce ingredients and set aside.
- Feel free to add more or less cayenne pepper for a spicier sauce.
How to Reheat Blooming Onion Bites
- Heat the oven to broil and place blooming onion bites in a single layer on a baking sheet. Broil them about 3 or four minutes until they are crisp again.
- Or bake in the oven at 375°F about 5-7 minutes or until heated through.
Favorite Snacks
- Shrimp Cocktail – use fresh or frozen shrimp
- Soy Ginger Steak Bites
- Air Fryer Onion Rings
- Garden Fresh Bruschetta – so easy to make
- Cheeseburger Stuffed Mushrooms
- Pretzel Bites – perfect for game day
- Jalapeno Popper Dip – crowd favorite
Did you make these Blooming Onion Bites? Be sure to leave a comment and a rating below!
Blooming Onion Bites with Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 large sweet onion or 2 medium onions
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup milk
- ½ cup water
- oil for frying
- seasoned salt
Dipping Sauce
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons sour cream
- 2 teaspoons ketchup
- 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish or 1 tablespoon horseradish mayo
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Combine all dip ingredients and set aside.
- Cut the onion in half vertically and make slices down the onion to make wedges. In a bowl, toss flour and seasonings except seasoning salt. In a second bowl, whisk eggs, milk, and water.
- Ensure onion slices are separated and place the onion wedges in a large freezer bag. Add about ¾ cup of the flour mixture and shake well to coat.
- Using a fork, gently lift out about 6 onion wedges and put them into the egg mixture. Using a fork, remove them from the egg mixture and into the flour mixture in the bowl. Toss to coat. (So it’s Flour. Egg. Flour.)
- Place on a rack while coating all of the onions. Gently tap the rack to remove excess flour before frying.
- Heat deep fryer or a couple of inches of oil in a pan to 360-375°F. Place the onions into the deep fryer or oil in small batches for about 6 minutes or until browned and crispy. Be sure not to overcrowd them.
- Remove from oil, drain on paper towels and sprinkle with seasoning salt. Serve hot with dipping sauce.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Appetizer, Party Food, Snack
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Adapted from Food Network Magazine!
I have not made this recipe, but have made the Air Fryer Onion Rings and they are wonderful. Could this recipe be also adapted to use the Air Fryer? Thank you.
We have not tried this recipe in an air fryer, but I think if you place in the basket of an air fryer and cook at 375° until onion is tender (20- 25 minutes) it should work. Let us know how it turns out for you!
Your Baked Spaghetti recipe was delicious,, I used diced tomatoes with chilies, very good
Any ideas for horseradish sub? I don’t have any.
Dijon might be a good substitute but you’ll need a bit less.
add mayo or sour cream to the horseradish to lighten it up. you still get the flavor but not the heat
Not happy with the milk and egg wash to loose the flour mixture did not stay on when put into the oil . I will make my own egg wash that is much thicker so the flour will stick . Otherwise ok
Sorry to hear that, Robert. You will have to let us know how it turns out with a thicker egg wash!
We have made these as whole rings, but not pieces. Can’t wait to try this great idea! Thank you, Holly, for sharing!!
You are very welcome. Can’t wait to hear what you think of it!
I’ve made these twice. Excellent. Thank you so much!
You’re very welcome Jennifer!
I’m making Blooming Onion Bites for the 1st time for tonight’s dinner, hope it’s tasty
In your recipe for blooming onion bites, you said th milk, & water in a bowl, but this isn’t in the ingredient list and also seasoning salt. How much do we use of these.
Milk and water are both listed in the ingredients list just above the oil. The seasoning salt is sprinkled after and you can use as much or little as you’d like to season your bites.
Love these recipes
This looks amazing! Definitely adding this to my list of recipes to try!