Onion Rings

Soak onion rings in ice water. Dredge in seasoned flour.fry at 350 until golden and floating.

Soak them in buttermilk before putting in flour

Some good suggestions here.

Also, don’t crowd the onion rings in the fryer. It’s better to do small batches.

Restaurants can cook more at a time because the commercial fryer is very good at maintaining temp.

Tanglers

Buy frozen onion rings, fry, enjoy!

Seriously, in my experience, there are a few things that aren't worth making from scratch and most of them are fried. Fried chicken, donuts, onion rings are, in my experience, way more trouble than they're worth.

quote:

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for about hour before frying

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Yes, let the flour bond before frying

Paper thin is the way to go. Use a mandolin to slice the onions. Soak in milk for about 20 minutes. Dredge the rings in salted flour.
Add some extra flour to the pile of onion rings while waiting for the oil to come up to temperature to keep them from sticking.
Fry at 370 until golden brown, about four minutes.

I remember Popeye's had the best onion rings growing up, but they don't sell them at the Popeye's here in Georgia. The Varsity is the next best thing.

They dip their onion rings in a wet batter before dropping them in oil. Here's a quick YouTube short to show the technique to getting their signature super thin crispy coating. LINK

I use this recipe but substitute ice cold water instead of beer LINK

Ingredients
1 jumbo yellow onion about 1 pound
1/3 cup corn starch
48 oz. vegetable oil can also use canola

Batter
1 ½ cups flour + 2 TBS as needed
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 12 oz. can beer can sub seltzer water

Instructions
Optional: Soak onions in ice water for 15 minutes and pat them completely dry before frying. This neutralizes the flavors and brings out a hint of sweetness instead of a harsher bite. It also makes them a bit crunchier.

Place cooling racks over a baking sheet next to where you’ll be frying.
Peel the onion and position it so the stem is facing outward (not up or down). Slice onions into ½ inch thick slices and separate the slices into rings. (See post for step by step photos and PRO tips for cutting onion rings.)

Toss in the cornstarch. This helps the batter stick to the onions. It also absorbs moisture and prevents gluten from developing, which makes them crispier.
Whisk the 1 ½ cups flour and remaining dry ingredients together until well-combined. Gradually pour in the beer, whisking continuously. Add up to 2 additional tablespoons of flour if needed. The consistency should resemble a thin pancake batter.

Heat oil to 365-375 degrees. Dip 4-5 onion rings in batter and gently shake off any excess. Carefully lower them, one at a time, into the preheated oil. If the oil is at the right temperature, they should rise to the top almost immediately. If it's not, they'll sink and stick to the bottom and the batter will fall off.

Fry for about 1 minute + 20 seconds. Flip them over when the first side is golden brown. Cook for another 45 seconds or so, then remove and place on cooling racks.