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Bloomin' Onion Petals

If you're an Outback fan, you'll love these crispy, crunchy Bloomin' Onion Petals with the most irresistible copycat dipping sauce! Absolutely irresistibly delicious.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time4 minutes
Total Time19 minutes
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Servings: 4
Calories: 543kcal

Ingredients

For the sauce:

  • ½ cup mayonnaise
  • ¼ cup sour cream
  • 2 tablespoons ketchup
  • 2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • Pinch of cayenne pepper

For the petals:

  • 1 large sweet onion
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons seasoned salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • ½ teaspoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 large egg
  • Oil for frying

Instructions

  • To make the sauce in a bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, ketchup, horseradish, garlic, salt, pepper, paprika, and cayenne until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve.
  • Cut the root end off of the onion and peel. Cut the onion in half, then into quarters.
  • Cut the quarters in half, set aside.
  • In a large bowl, add the flour, seasoned salt, pepper, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, onion powder, and smoked paprika, stir until combined.
  • In another medium-sized bowl, add the buttermilk and egg and whisk together.
  • Separate out the onion petals and place them in a gallon-sized ziptop bag. To the bag, add 1⁄4 cup of the flour mixture. Seal and toss the onions in the flour until coated as best you can.
  • Take a handful of the onion petals at a time, gently shaking off the excess flour. Dip them into the buttermilk mixture, let any excess liquid drip off.
  • Next, add the onion petals directly to the bowl with the flour mixture and coat them well, again shaking off any excess flour.
  • Place the onion petals onto a parchment-lined sheet tray white continue coating the rest of the remaining onion petals.
  • Heat your deep fryer or a large skillet that has deep sides with about 2-inches of oil to 350°F. Once hot, fry the onion petals for 3-4 minutes until golden brown, you will most likely need to do this in batches to not overcrowd the pan.
  • Place the fried onion petals onto a plate lined with paper towels to absorb any excess oil.
  • Then, place them on a wire rack over a sheet tray (to catch any excess oil) while you fry the remaining petals, so they don’t become soggy.
  • Once all of the onion petals are done frying, remove the sauce from the refrigerator, serve and enjoy!

Notes

  1. Make sure whatever you're frying the onions in has high walls on it to help keep the oil splatter down. 
  2. Use fresh onions when possible, they'll have the best flavor. 
  3. The longer these onion pieces sit, the more soggy they'll become. So enjoy them as soon as possible.
  4. Use a sweet onion variety if you have them, other onion varieties can be used in a pinch. See my suggestions above.
  5. Choose your oil wisely. See my tips on what we like to use above.
  6. You can serve these with other dipping sauces if desired. 
  7. Make the sauce a day ahead of time if you can, it's even more flavorful then!
  8. These petals aren't spicy, if you like spice. Try adding more cayenne to your breading and to the homemade sauce mixture. If you want to really kick up the heat, try hot sauce in the sauce mixture and in the buttermilk and egg wash for the onion petals.
  9. You can freeze these before you fry them or once they've been fried, see all my tips above. 

Nutrition

Calories: 543kcal | Carbohydrates: 62g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 13g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 68mg | Sodium: 1823mg | Potassium: 353mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 596IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 130mg | Iron: 4mg