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These 6-Ingredient Healthy Vegan Onion Rings are Crispy, Golden Brown, and Absolutely Delicious…but you don’t need ANY Oil to cook them!
Ahhh, the Onion Ring. To be honest, I can’t really remember the last time I’ve had one. Mostly because as I became a more health-conscious person, my cravings for greasy, salty, and deep fried foods slowly faded away.
However, these Vegan Onion Rings are (1) not deep fried (2) not unhealthy (3) magically crispy, WITHOUT Oil. Say what?!
Crispy and Fat-Free Onion Rings sounds like an oxymoron, but believe me, it is possible. And delicious! I brought these to a potluck and they were gone in less than 10 minutes. Which is a pretty damn good seal of approval, if I do say so myself.
I have provided instructions to cook these Vegan Onion Rings in both a conventional oven and an air fryer. An Air Fryer is a super cool device that allows you to “fry” foods without the use of oil! I recently acquired one a month or two ago, and have been pretty obsessed. (Side Note: it makes the BEST crispy tofu in only 10 minutes. Future recipe, perhaps?)
I would recommend the Air Fryer method, as the Onion Rings were more crispy and cooked in less than half the time! This is the one I use.
This recipe is surprisingly simple, too. You only need 6 ingredients, and they’re all very affordable. Heck, you probably have most (if not all) of them in your pantry already! And most of us probably have an Onion (or two, or three) that may or may not be sprouting and is just screaming to be cooked with. Or is that just me…
Don’t forget the ketchup, though. It’s essential 😉
A Few Final Thoughts:
- These Onion Rings will stay crispy for a few hours after you make them, but will not last overnight. As with most “fried” foods, they are best served warm.
- For a less messy preparation, try to keep one hand dedicated to dipping the Onion Rings in the wet mix, and the other for the dry. You’ll be glad you did!
- This recipe would also work well if you swapped the flour for Gluten Free flour and used GF breadcrumbs. You could also use these breadcrumbs made from Chickpeas to give the recipe a higher-protein content.
If you’re looking for more Healthy Side Dishes, you’ll also love these Perfect Oven Baked Fries and this Easy Vegan Cornbread!
Finally, if you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I love seeing your delicious recreations 🙂
PrintHealthy Vegan Onion Rings
These 6-Ingredient Healthy Vegan Onion Rings are Crispy, Golden Brown, and Absolutely Delicious…but you don’t need ANY Oil to cook them!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 6 People 1x
Ingredients
- 2–3 Yellow Onions (3 medium or 2 large)
For the Wet Mix:
- 1/2 cup Flour of Choice (All Purpose, Spelt, GF, etc)
- 2/3 cup Unsweetened Plant Milk
- 1/2 tsp Paprika
- 1/4 tsp Turmeric
- 1/2 tsp Salt
For the Dry Mix:
- 1 cup Panko Bread Crumbs (make sure they are Vegan!)
- 1/2 tsp Paprika
- 1/4 tsp Turmeric
- 1/4 tsp Salt
Instructions
- If you are using an Oven, preheat it to 450F.
- Slice the end off of each Onion, and then peel the outer skin off. Carefully cut each Onion into 1/2″ circular portions.
- Note the “layers” that comprise each Onion portion (like the pattern in a tree trunk). We will be using two Onion “Layers” for each Onion Ring. Using your fingers, carefully press the center portion of each Onion away from two of the Onion Layers, to form a hollow Ring. Repeat with each portion of the Onion until no more circles remain, and then continue with the rest of the Onion portions.
- Add all of the Wet Mix ingredients to a medium bowl, and stir well.
- Add all of the Dry Mix ingredients to a separate bowl, and mix well. Then, divide the Dry Mix evenly into two separate bowls. (The Dry Mix gets a little “sticky” with time, and this prevents the mixture from becoming unusable.)
- Using separate hands for the Wet and Dry mixes, dip each Onion Ring into the Wet Mix, then transfer to the Dry Mix and coat evenly with breadcrumbs. Place onto a greased or lined Baking Tray, or into the basket of your Air Fryer if you are using one. Repeat with the remaining Onion Rings.
Air Fryer Baking Instructions:
- Bake the Onion Rings at 400F for 8-10 minutes. You will have to cook the Onion Rings in a few batches, so the basket does not become overcrowded. Serve Warm.
Oven Instructions:
- Bake the Onion Rings on a greased or lined Baking Tray (I used a silicone mat) at 450F for 30-35 minutes. If you are using parchment paper, I would suggest flipping the Onion Rings, but otherwise you should be ok. Serve Warm.
Notes
These Onion Rings will stay crispy for a few hours after you make them, but will not last overnight. As with most “fried” foods, they are best served warm.
For a less messy preparation, try to keep one hand dedicated to dipping the Onion Rings in the wet mix, and the other for the dry. You’ll be glad you did!
This recipe would also work well if you swapped the flour for Gluten Free flour and used GF breadcrumbs. You could also use these breadcrumbs made from Chickpeas to give the recipe a higher-protein content.
Want to save these Healthy Vegan Onion Rings for later? Pin the recipe to your Pinterest boards:
Fantastic onion rings in my air fryer! Thanks!
★★★★★
You’re very welcome!
I can’t wait to try this recipe! I have an actifry which has an arm in it that stirs whatever is in there.. Should I remove it for this recipe?
Yes, I would remove that
Wow! I love this recipe article. I just followed it step by step. With the help of this guide, I can now make vegan Onion rings in my air fryer
★★★★
Dang, I must have messed up. My breading didn’t stick to the onion rings at all. 🙁 But since everyone else had success, maybe I’ll give it another try.
What a delicious recipes you always place on your website. Where do you, if I may ask, get these ideas?
Mostly through personal experimentation, travels, and childhood memories!
Absolutely amazing! Exactly what I wanted!!
★★★★★
So glad you enjoyed, Emily!
I didn’t have unsweetened coconut milk and my onions were sweet.. But my mom liked them a lot. Used my new air fryer and think I need to learn how to use it better, do you spray the tray with oil.. I heard you shouldn’t use Pam. plus I didn’t have turmeric will get yellow onions, unsweetened milk and turmeric and try again. I did add garlic powder.
We are trying these out, but the wet ingredients came out looking like a paste. I’m certain it’s something we did to try and make them keto friendly, but they looked too darn good not to try them out!
Hi Will! If the wet ingredients come out too thick, you can always thin them out with a little extra liquid (I would add in 1 tbsp increments). It should be pretty thick, about pancake batter consistency. The amount of liquid needed will depend on the type of flour used, as each type absorbs liquid in different amounts x
I tried these last night! I’m glad I didn’t skim over the part about separating the dry mixture into two parts, I ended up needing to make another batch of dry mixture even with separating it. They tasted really good and definitely satisfied my onion ring craving! Do you think i’d be able to freeze these after I coat them and bake them up later?
Thanks for the recipe!
Yes, separation is definitely helpful! I’m not sure about freezing, though I imagine it should work. I would freeze the onion rings on a baking tray first with space in between them first, then place them into a freezer-safe bag. This way they will not stick together!
My dry mixture Turned out very sticky after dredging my onion rings in it. and I can’t use it to coat the rest of the onion rings! Any suggestions would be appreciated!
Hi Barbara, it’s best to separate the dry mix into two parts, so when the first part gets a little sticky, you can switch to the second part of the dry mixture! You should also only use one hand for the wet and one hand for the dry mixture – it keeps things neater.
I’m wondering if I did something wrong? My wet mixture was super thick, and generally didn’t stick to the onion rings well. I did accidentally put my bread crumbs in the wet mixture, but thought I got most of them out alright. Can you tell me about how thick/runny the wet mixture should be? They still turned out pretty darn good! They just didn’t have much breading on them. Thanks!
The mixture should be pretty thick, but still stick to the rings! You may have added too much flour – when you measure, you are supposed to spoon the flour into the measuring cup, then level the top off with a knife 🙂 If it happens again, you can always add 1-2 tbsp of liquid to thin it out a little more
These were absolutely amazing. I’ve only been vegan for a few months and I really miss my deep fried junk haha especially onion rings now I’ve found an amazing alternative. Ended up making 2 batches as my family demolished the first! A+ I loved it
That’s so great to hear, Zahn! 🙂
Just got an air fryer and have been trying different recipes. I just made these onion rings and they are ridonkulous!!!! Sooo good! Mine actually came out exactly like your pictures! Thank you Caitlin!! Viva la vegan!
★★★★★
That’s awesome, Jen! 🙂
Caitlin, this recipe was amazing! I just bought an airfyer today and tested it out using your onion ring recipe and the onion rings were gone within less than a minute! Thank you so much!????
★★★★★
Awesome – glad you enjoyed! 🙂
Uhm yum! I want to make these right now!
I made these for my husband this evening. Although not vegan, he is faithfully following a low-fat, low-sodium diet for medical reasons. I am always looking for creative (and yummy) ways to “healthify” his favorite foods. I (obviously) left out the salt in your recipe, but added a generous amount of garlic & herb salt-free seasoning to compensate. The final product earned a firm 4 stars from him (and he is a HARSH critic)!! THANKS!!
That’s so great to hear! I bet the garlic & herb seasoning tasted great 🙂
My family loves these!!!
I made these for friends last night and everybody absolutely loved them! They were gone within seconds.
I used my air fryer, not sure how crispy they would get in the oven. 🙂
★★★★★
Awesome!
NO WAY. I have yet to make these! You have no idea how much I adored onion rings as a kid. They were absolutely delicious! I’m so happy there’s an easy and delicious vegan version of them now!
These look delicious. I’m going to make them this weekend. Thanks! I do think you meant to say 2 large or 3 medium onions in the instructions. 🙂
Thank you! I’ll fix that, haha 😉
These are AMAZING! I don’t even miss the usual onion rings and their greasiness! Thanks for a great recipe!
★★★★★
Thanks so much!
Wow! I can’t wait to prepare these, they sound and look amazing…and the reviews confirm such! I love to chat you included alternatives as well.
★★★★★
Thanks, Camille! Hope you love them as much as we do 🙂