An American Housewife: Homemade Bloomin' Onion (or Onion Blossom)

June 24, 2013

Homemade Bloomin' Onion (or Onion Blossom)


Homemade Bloomin' Onion (or Onion Blossom)

Although I have posted this recipe before, the photo above is 'dinner' for myself and my 17 year old daughter recently. Sometimes we just crave one of these "Bloomin' Onion" appetizers for dinner and if my husband is working and we don't have to worry about making anything for anyone else but just us, we often have an 'appetizer' dinner. This is one of our top 5 choices.

The first thing to mention is to make your sauce first. That spicy Southwestern sauce is so good and is the perfect accompaniment to the hot, fried onion petals. But it's better if it can chill for a couple hours if you have the time so the flavors all blend together.

The second thing to mention: I do own an 'onion' cutter guide. It's a cheap little $5 plastic cutting guide I bought from Amazon years ago. It's flimsy, it didn't come with any instructions and it didn't have a 'corer' (which they apparently sell with them now) but I like it! People may complain about they are just cheap plastic, but they DO work and they DO help you slice. You put your onion in the center and simply use the prongs as guides to slice the petals and it keeps you from cutting all the way through the onion and accidentally cutting it in half.

*But you don't need one to make a Bloomin' Onion* For a short time, it was 'lost in the move' from our recent relocation so the photos below show you how to cut the onion if you don't have a slicing guide. You just have to be careful not to slice down so far the onion breaks apart. The onion in the picture above is the one we had recently and I did use the guide I bought on Amazon. (Links to a few options are at the end of this post).

The Southwestern Bloomin Onion Sauce: Prepare ahead of time so it has time to chill

1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons ketchup
2 tablespoons cream-style horseradish sauce (I use Kraft)
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
Dash ground black pepper

Prepare the dipping sauce by combining all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Keep the sauce covered in your refrigerator until needed.

Blooming Onion (or Onion Blossom)

1 cup milk
1 egg, beaten

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 t salt
1 1/2 t cayenne pepper
1/2 t ground black pepper
1/4 t dried oregano
1/8 t dried thyme
1 giant 'sweet' onion like a Vidalia

Vegetable oil for frying

Beat the egg and combine it with the milk in a medium bowl big enough to hold the onion. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, peppers, oregano and thyme.

To slice the onion - First slice 3/4 inch to 1 inch off the top and bottom of the onion. Remove the papery skin. Use a thin knife to cut a 1-inch diameter core out of the middle of the onion. Using a large knife you will now slice all the way across the onion but not down to the cutting board. You need to only cut 3/4 of the way through the onion so the bottom holds it together. You need to make 16 slices, or as many close to that number as you can to make the petals. Spread the "petals" of the onion apart gently, you'll want to separate them to make coating easier and to get the flour and seasoning mixture down into the onion base.

Dip the onion in the milk mixture, and then coat it liberally with the dry ingredients. Double dip your onions - wet, dry, wet and dry again. Then let the onion rest for at least 15 minutes to 'set' the breading.

Heat oil in a deep fryer or deep pot to 350 degrees. Make sure you use enough oil to completely cover the onion when it fries. Fry the onion upside down for about 6 minutes then right side up in the oil for 6 minutes or until it turns golden brown and the petals are done. Remove it from the oil and let it drain on a rack or paper towels. Salt and serve with the sauce for dipping.