Beer Battered Onion Rings

While traditionally a classic bar food, beer battered onion rings are great year round and in a plethora of locations. From Superbowl house parties to backyard BBQs, to even a casual side dish to steak nights. This onion rings recipe is easy, delicious, and fun.

beer battered onion rings on a bed of lettuce with dipping sauces on the side

Onion rings can be battered in a few different ways, but my favorite has to be with a simple beer batter. This creates a lovely crispy yet airy coating perfect for dipping in a sauce of your choice.

Speaking of sauces I’ve included a few recipes down below if you care to make some yourself!

If you are a fan of deep-fried appetizers then you may also enjoy my recipes for deep fried camembert and cheeseburger spring rolls!

What Makes Beer Battered Onion Rings Different?

Beer battered onion rings differ from regular ones primarily in their batter composition. While regular onion rings are typically coated in a mixture of flour, egg, and seasoning, beer battered onion rings incorporate beer into the batter, which results in a lighter, crispier texture and a slightly tangy flavor. The carbonation in the beer creates bubbles that aerate the batter, giving it a delicate, airy consistency when fried. Additionally, the alcohol in the beer evaporates during the frying process, leaving behind a crispy exterior.

This type of batter is also popular in Beer Battered Fish Tacos as well as other vegetables and even cheese curds!

What You’ll Need

If you want to make beer battered onion rings at home, or any deep fried dishes in fact, you will need a large pan/pot or a Countertop Deep Fryer. If you love to deep fry and plan to do it often I highly recommend the latter. However if you are someone like me who does it once every so often, but mainly gets their bar food at, well, bars, then a pot is perfectly acceptable.

I also recommend a Hot Oil Thermometer as the oil does need to be in a specific degree range. If your oil is too hot the batter will burn, and if it is not hot enough it will get soaked into the batter creating greasy and undesirable onion rings.

How To Make Beer Battered Onion Rings

The star ingredient is clearly the onions, but there are a few more you’ll need. I will note though, if you want to avoid alcohol in beer batter you can substitute sparkling water instead.

Ingredients

  • 4-8 Onions – Peeled and sliced into thick rings (about 2-3 cm or one inch). The reason there is such a large range is because you will have more than enough batter and oil to make more than enough, so if you are serving a lot of people feel free to just keep using onions until you run out.
  • 125 grams Flour (1 cup) – Sifted. AP works well here.
  • 80 grams Corn Starch (1/2 cup) – This makes the batter much finer and really helps get that crispy coating you see at bars and restaurants.
  • 1 tbsp Garlic Powder
  • 1 tbsp Paprika
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • 1/2 tsp MSG
  • 300 ml Beer (1 1/4 cups) – I recommend using a beer with high carbonation like a Pilsner or a Lager, although there are no set rules in this regard. A dark, denser beer like a Dunkel will create less air in the finished onion rings, but impart more flavor (namely caramel notes). Personally I don’t use beer for the flavor outside of the slight tang so I recommend something light.
  • Neutral Oil – For Frying

Instructions

Take all your dry ingredients and add them to a large bowl. Whisk to combine, then slowly pour in the beer. Whisk in the beer just until you have a homogenous mixture, any more will knock carbonation out of the mix.

Using your pan/pot/deep-fryer get the oil to 175C or 350F. You can test the temperature with your thermometer. You can also drizzle in a little batter and see if it fries golden brown.

Dredge the sliced onion rings in the batter and gently lay them in the oil. If you need to flip, do so when they have puffed and turned golden.

When the onion rings are perfectly fried, remove them to a paper towel lined plate. As long as the oil was hot enough you should not have too much excess oil dripping off of them, but it is better to sop it up quickly so the rings stay crispy.

If the oil level drops too much to fry feel free to add more.

Voila!! Deep fried beer battered onion rings perfect for any event. You can eat them as an appetizer, side dish, or bar snack but the real fun comes down below – SAUCES!

What Dipping Sauces Go Best With Onion Rings

beer battered onion rings on a bed of lettuce with dipping sauces below

If you are looking for the best sauces to pair with beer battered onion rings look no further. These are my three favorite sauces to dip onion rings in, and I’ve included three simplified recipes for each. Do note that all of these have store-bought versions as well, so if you don’t feel like making dips after all that deep frying then feel free to use pre-made versions.

Easy Ranch

To Make: Add all ingredients to a bowl and whisk together. Keep chilled and serve cold.

Beer Cheese

  • 100 grams Cream Cheese
  • 100 grams Processed Cheddar Cheese
  • 1 tsp Garlic Powder
  • 1 tsp Onion Powder
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1/4 tsp MSG
  • 60 ml Beer (1/4 cup)

To Make: Add all ingredients to a food processor and blend until smooth. Slowly trickle in more beer if it is too thick until you reach desired consistency.

Sriracha Mayonnaise

To Make: Add ingredients to a bowl and whisk to combine. Taste and adjust sriracha as desired.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can you make beer batter without beer?

A: While you cannot make beer batter without beer, you can use soda water as a substitute. This is because the primary purpose of the beer is to add carbonation so the batter gets airy and crispy during the deep-frying process.

Q: How long do beer battered onion rings last?

A: Like with most fried goods, the quality of batter (aka the crispiness) tends to degrade rapidly. Thus making onion rings far ahead of time will not be the best choice. If you do have leftover onion rings the best way to store them would be to let them come to room temperature and then freeze them. Reheat using an air-fryer or toaster-oven.

Q: Can you recycle the used oil from deep frying?

A: In most cases you can re-use frying oil. Simple strain it through a filter when cool into a jar. However depending on how many onions you use in this recipe, you might have cooked the oil too long, in which case it is better to dump it.

Q: Are beer battered onion rings vegetarian or vegan?

A: Beer battered onion rings are both vegetarian AND vegan. As there are no ingredients that come from animal products, you can be sure that making this popular appetizer fulfills all vegetarian and vegan requirements.

Try These Other Delicious Appetizers

beer battered onion rings on a bed of lettuce with dipping sauces on the side

Beer Battered Onion Rings

While traditionally a classic bar food, beer battered onion rings are great year round and in a plethora of locations. From Superbowl house parties to backyard BBQs, to even a casual side dish to steak nights. This onion rings recipe is easy, delicious, and fun.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Appetizer, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine American
Servings 8 people
Calories 577 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 Pot or Pan or Deep-Fryer

Ingredients
  

  • 4-8 Onions Peeled and sliced into thick rings about 2-3 cm or one inch. The reason there is such a large range is because you will have more than enough batter and oil to make more than enough, so if you are serving a lot of people feel free to just keep using onions until you run out.
  • 125 grams Flour 1 cup – Sifted. AP works well here.
  • 80 grams Corn Starch 1/2 cup – This makes the batter much finer and really helps get that crispy coating you see at bars and restaurants.
  • 1 tbsp Garlic Powder
  • 1 tbsp Paprika
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • 1/2 tsp MSG
  • 300 ml Beer 1 1/4 cups – I recommend using a beer with high carbonation like a Pilsner or a Lager, although there are no set rules in this regard. A dark, denser beer like a Dunkel will create less air in the finished onion rings, but impart more flavor (namely caramel notes). Personally I don’t use beer for the flavor outside of the slight tang so I recommend something light.
  • Neutral Oil For Frying, as needed

Instructions
 

  • Take all your dry ingredients and add them to a large bowl. Whisk to combine, then slowly pour in the beer. Whisk in the beer just until you have a homogenous mixture, any more will knock carbonation out of the mix.
  • Using your pan/pot/deep-fryer get the oil to 175C or 350F. You can test the temperature with your thermometer. You can also drizzle in a little batter and see if it fries golden brown.
    Dredge the sliced onion rings in the batter and gently lay them in the oil. If you need to flip, do so when they have puffed and turned golden.
  • When the onion rings are perfectly fried, remove them to a paper towel lined plate. As long as the oil was hot enough you should not have too much excess oil dripping off of them, but it is better to sop it up quickly so the rings stay crispy.
Keyword Deep Fried, Party Food, Vegan, Vegetarian
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