How to Make Fried Onions (Crispy Onions/Birista)

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How to make fried onions (crispy onions/Birista) with just one ingredient and some oil (fried or air fryer crispy onions), perfect for topping a green bean casserole, soups, salads, grains, and more! Plus, these onion strings can be ready in as little as 10 minutes!

A plate with crispy fried onion

Recently I seem to be spending a lot of time focusing on delicious garlicky DIYs and recipes (like roasted garlic, roasted garlic bread, and cheesy garlic bread). Now it’s time to throw the onion in the spotlight with this simple method for fried onions/crispy onions! Having shared a recipe for Indonesian Nasi Uduk, followers let me know that crispy fried shallots were a “must” garnish – and I couldn’t get the idea of those little crispy morsels of flavor out of my head!

In fact, crispy fried onions (aka barista) are very popular in South Asian cooking and in Western cuisine. They can be used in biryanis, to top salads, stews, or maybe even a Thanksgiving classic like green bean casserole?! Keep reading for tons of ways to enjoy these crispy onions!

A colander with crispy fried onion

Plus, when fried right, the shoestring onions won’t absorb tons of oil – leaving you with super crispy, not greasy, results. Instead, the onions are super crisp. Best of all, when making this fried onion recipe at home, you don’t have to worry about any unwanted preservatives, chemicals, colors, etc.

Looking for more ways to enjoy onions? You might like these DIYs for onion flakes or onion powder. You can also use them in recipes like pickled red onions, cucumber onion salad, or Shirazi salad (cucumber, onion, and tomato)!

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The Ingredients

  • Onions: this method works well with any onion that has thin layers – white, yellow, sweet, red, or even shallots would work.
  • Oil: use a neutral, high-heat oil like vegetable oil (sunflower/canola) or coconut oil. Ghee would also work.
  • Salt & pepper (optional).
  • Cornstarch (optional): you can toss the onions with cornstarch or flour before frying for even crispier “French fried onions”.
Three onions

Optional Add-Ins and Recipe Variations

  • French fried onions: soak the onion slices in buttermilk (or a buttermilk alternative) for 15-30 minutes. Then toss the onions in flour (or cornstarch/GF all-purpose flour for gluten-free crispy onions), salt, and pepper mixture. Toss in the oil and fry until crispy.
  • Spices: if you decide to use flour/cornstarch, you could combine it with several spices for extra flavor. Paprika, chili/cayenne, BBQ seasoning, cumin, etc. Plus salt and pepper, of course.

How to Make Crispy Onions

Step 1: Prepare the onions

First, peel and thinly slice the onions. You can do this with a sharp knife, a mandolin, or the slicer disk on your food processor, for even-sized pieces.

Sliced onion on a chopping board

Step 2: Fry the onions

Then, heat up about an inch of oil in a large, deep pot. Once hot (over medium heat), add the onion and allow them to fry until browned and crispy (2-4 minutes). Stir occasionally to make sure they’re frying evenly.

If you do this in smaller batches, then it can take as little as 2 minutes. However, I’ve found that when frying the whole amount, it’ll take about 3-4 minutes.

When ready, remove the onions from the oil and place them over a layer of paper towel to absorb any excess oil (optionally blot the top with a second sheet). You can then enjoy the onion strings as-is or season lightly with some salt and pepper first.

Before and after frying onion

For air fryer crispy onions: preheat the Air fryer (if necessary) to 270ºF/130ºC and then lightly spray the basket with oil, add the onions, and spray them with a little oil too. Then Air fry for 20-30 minutes, tossing/flipping the onions every 5 minutes to make sure they brown evenly, until crispy and golden brown. 

Make sure to allow the onions to cool entirely before storing; otherwise, they can “steam” and become soggy.

How to Store Crispy Fried Onions?

Make ahead/Store: you can prepare these crispy onions up to 4-5 days in advance (and store in an airtight container) or up to 2 weeks in advance (stored in the fridge). When using, you can re-crisp them in the oven or Air Fryer at 375ºF/190ºC for just a few minutes.

Freeze: allow the crispy onions to cool, then place in a freezer-safe bag and freeze for between 4-6 months.

Fried onions in a colander

How to Serve?

There are tons of ways to enjoy these crispy onion strings, including:

Let me know in the comment what your favorite ways to use these crispy onions are!

Fried onions over kitchen paper

Recipe Tips and FAQs

  • For bulk frying: as is generally the case with deep-frying, the more onions you have, the longer they’ll take to fry. For a large batch, it can take up to 20 minutes.
  • Remove the onions when a mediumgold color: they’ll continue to cook for a while after removing from the oil.
  • To use the leftover oil: the leftover oil from frying the onion strings will have a subtle yet slightly sweet oniony flavor. Use it for other frying or within vinaigrettes, etc., to add an extra layer of flavor. Store it for 2-3 weeks in a jar in the refrigerator.
  • Raw to fried onion yield: onions can lose up to 50% of their weight when fried. I haven’t measured the exact yield, though several sources state that one large onion equals around ½ cup fried onions.
  • Checking the oil is hot enough: I check this by dipping a toothpick/skewer into the oil. If it starts to bubble around the skewer, the oil is ready. Alternatively, you can use a thermometer. The heat should be around 355ºF/180ºC.
  • Keep an eye on the onions: once they’ve turned brown, it’s practically seconds before they may start to burn – so keep a watchful eye on the pan.

If you try this crispy fried onions recipe, I’d love to hear your thoughts/questions below. Also, I’d appreciate a recipe card rating below, and feel free to tag me in your recipe recreations on Instagram @Alphafoodie!

How to Make Fried Onions (Crispy Onions/Birista) – No Batter)

4.97 from 33 votes
By: Samira
How to make fried onions (crispy onions/Birista) with just one ingredient and some oil (fried or air fryer crispy onions), perfect for topping a green bean casserole, soups, salads, grains, and more! Plus, these onion strings can be ready in as little as 10 minutes.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Servings: 16

Equipment

Ingredients 
 

  • 2.2 lb onion white, yellow, red, sweet, or shallots (4-5 onions)
  • 4 cups oil for frying neutral, high-heat frying oil like vegetable oil (sunflower/canola)

Instructions 

Step 1: Prepare the onions

  • Peel and thinly slice the onions. You can do this with a sharp knife, a mandolin, or the slicer disk on your food processor, for even-sized pieces.

Step 2: Fry the onions

  • Heat up about an inch of oil in a large, deep pot. Once hot (over medium heat), add the onion and allow them to fry until browned and crispy (2-4 minutes). Stir occasionally to make sure they're frying evenly.
    If you do this in smaller batches, then it can take as little as 2 minutes per batch. However, I've found that when frying the whole amount, it'll take about 3-4 minutes.
    For air fryer crispy onions: preheat the Air fryer (if necessary) to 270ºF/130ºC and then lightly spray the basket with oil, add the onions, and spray them with a little oil too. Then Air fry for 20-30 minutes, tossing/flipping the onions every 5 minutes to make sure they brown evenly, until crispy and golden brown.
  • When ready, remove the onions from the oil (with a slotted spoon) and place them over a layer of paper towel to absorb any excess oil (optionally blot the top with a second sheet). You can then enjoy the onion strings directly or season lightly with some salt and pepper first.
  • Make sure to allow the onions to cool entirely before storing; otherwise, they can "steam" and become soggy.

How to Store Crispy Fried Onions?

  • Make ahead/Store: you can prepare these crispy onions up to 4-5 days in advance (and store in an airtight container) or up to 2 weeks in advance (stored in the fridge). When using, you can re-crisp them in the oven or Air Fryer at 375ºF/190ºC for just a few minutes.
    Freeze: allow the crispy onions to cool, then place in a freezer-safe bag and freeze for between 4-6 months.

Video

Notes

  • For bulk frying: as is generally the case with deep-frying, the more onions you have, the longer they’ll take to fry. For a large batch, it can take up to 20 minutes.
  • Remove the onions when a mediumgold color: They’ll continue to cook for a while after removing from the oil.
  • To use the leftover oil: the leftover oil from frying the onion strings will have a subtle yet slightly sweet oniony flavor. Use it for other frying or within vinaigrettes, etc., to add an extra layer of flavor. Store it for 2-3 weeks in a jar in the refrigerator.
  • Raw to fried onion yield: onions can lose up to 50% of their weight when fried. I haven’t measured the exact yield, though several sources state that one large onion equals around ½ cup fried onions.
  • Checking the oil is hot enough: I check this by dipping a toothpick/skewer into the oil. If it starts to bubble around the skewer, the oil is ready. Alternatively, you can use a thermometer. The heat should be around 355ºF/180ºC.
  • Keep an eye on the onions: once they’ve turned brown, it’s practically seconds before they may start to burn – so keep a watchful eye on the pan.
 
Optional Add-Ins and Recipe Variations:
  • French fried onions: soak the onion slices in buttermilk (or a buttermilk alternative) for 15-30 minutes. Then toss the onions in flour (or cornstarch or GF all-purpose flour), salt, and pepper mixture. Toss in the oil and fry until crispy.
  • Spices: if you decide to use flour/cornstarch, you could combine it with several spices for extra flavor. Paprika, chili/cayenne, BBQ seasoning, cumin, etc. Plus salt and pepper, of course.
  • Cornstarch (optional): you can toss the onions with cornstarch or flour before frying for even crispier results.
 
Check the blog post for lots of serving suggestions!
Course: DIYs, Side
Cuisine: American, Asian
Freezer friendly: 4-6 Months
Shelf life: 1-2 Weeks

Nutrition

Calories: 56kcal, Carbohydrates: 6g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 4g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 1g, Sodium: 2mg, Potassium: 91mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 1IU, Vitamin C: 5mg, Calcium: 14mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

4.97 from 33 votes (30 ratings without comment)

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10 Comments

  1. Mae says:

    Sebelumnya saya tidak tahu jika bawang bombay bisa dimasak menjadi bawang goreng. Karena saya kira jenis bawang ini mengandung banyak air.
    Di tempatku, kami memiliki. Sejenis Shallot. Saat dicampur tepung dapat bertahan hingga 6 bulan meski tidak disimpan dalam freezer.

    1. Support @ Alphafoodie says:

      Thanks for your comment!

  2. Brenda says:

    5 stars
    Excellent, a terrific amount of tips, appreciated. I really like crispy onions and your timing etc is spot on. Thank you

    1. Support @ Alphafoodie says:

      Thank you so much for the kind feedback, Brenda. 🙂

  3. Terry Scott says:

    4 stars
    I love fried onions with a ribeye steak.

    1. Support @ Alphafoodie says:

      Sounds like a great combination Terry. 🙂

  4. Danny says:

    Four minutes my *ss. 20-40 prolly closer/

    1. Support @ Alphafoodie says:

      Hi Danny,
      If you are bulk frying, then it would take longer. I usually work with smaller quantities and I fry them in batches if needed. I hope this helps.

      1. Jenna says:

        5 stars
        How many tablespoons is in one serving?

      2. Support @ Alphafoodie says:

        Hi Jenna,
        About 2 Tbsp is one serving. It’s mostly used as garnish