Enjoy this healthy Baked Onion Rings With a few simple ingredients. Make them spicy or keep them mild. This baked onion ring recipe is crunchy on the outside and soft and delicate on the inside. Includes new air-fry option. Crunch away!

I played around with many baked onion ring recipes without oil to find the right combination of spices and crunch needed for the perfect texture and flavor. Finally, after many attempts, I found the secret ingredients to the best-baked onion ring recipe.
Jump:
We love spicy food in our house, so if you are not a spice lover, I provide a milder option.
Remember, you can always add spice gradually but once you put it in a recipe you can’t remove it. So add light.
Another quick trick for baked onion rings is to salt and microwave before baking.
Baked Onion Ring Recipe Ingredients
Batting and breading onion rings is a simple two-step process. Blend the batter using a high speed blender and a few ingredients.
Mix the bread in a separate bowl. Make the breading gluten-free by using gluten-free piece of bread
- Yellow Onion: Yellow onions are commonly used for onion rings because they are milder than white or red onions.
- Unsweetened, unflavored plant milk: I used oat milk because it is naturally creamy.
- Flour: I used oat flour.
- Nutrition Facts: Nutritional yeast provides a thickener and vitamin B12 and a vegan cheesy flavor.
- Bread Crumbs: I make my own breadcrumbs by toasting the bread and pulse the toasted bread in a food processor.
- Corn meal: Cornmeal is an excellent source of fiber and selenium. Also, it contains all the essential nutrients required by the human body.
- Garlic Salt: Garlic salt is a mixture of garlic powder and table salt, which makes it a seasoning salt. Garlic powder, as explained above, is simply dried and crushed garlic cloves. Garlic salt is a mixture of garlic powder and salt, which further infuses the garlic flavor.
- Red Chilli (optional): Red chilies are made only with red chilies that are dried and finely ground.
Baked onion ring recipe substitution
- White onions are often used in place of yellow onions.
- Any plant milk works, but make sure it’s sweet and unflavored.
- Any flour works well for this recipe.
- Soy sauce or miso is often used to replace nutritional yeast; However, since both soy sauce and miso are liquids, either add milk or add the dry ingredients to the bread.
- If you are wondering if garlic powder can be used instead of garlic salt, the answer is yes, but not in a 1:1 ratio. Make a homemade garlic salt substitute with 3 parts salt and 1 part garlic powder.
- Instead of making bread crumbs, buy store-bought bread crumbs. Use gluten-free breadcrumbs for a gluten-free alternative.
- If not available, use cornflour instead of cornmeal.
- Skip the cayenne pepper if you’re sensitive to spice or prefer a milder version of this baked onion ring recipe.
Preparing the onions for the Baked Onion Ring recipe
To make Baked Onion Rings, first prepare the onions. While experimenting in my kitchen, which happens every day, I discovered the secret to the best onion ring recipe. While some of my ideas fail miserably, others create incredible opportunities. With that being said, this step is a game-changer in preparing onions for baked onion rings.
The goal of a perfect onion ring is to achieve a soft center with a crisp outside. Unfortunately, this process occurs during frying. But, to make oil-free onion rings, all you need is a microwave, a large glass measuring cup, and plenty of salt.
Although salt may deter you, don’t worry! Salt, when used only in onion preparation, is removed before cooking.
- Cut the onion and separate the circles inside each onion slice; Place in a microwave-safe container.
- Salt generously and toss with your hands.
- Cook in the microwave for 5 minutes, covering with a paper towel to prevent splatter.
- Wash onion in water several times and drain well.
- Place on paper towels and pat dry; Discard paper towels.
As a result, the onions are soft and ready to be battered and breaded.
cooking options
Baked Onion Rings

Place onion ring batter and breading mixture in two separate bowls. I use a silicone baking mat on my baking sheet to keep it oil-free to avoid sticking.
- Take two separate deep bowls.
- Combine plant milk, nutritional yeast and flour using a single cup blender. Blend until smooth. It will be like pancake batter.
- Then, using a second bowl, combine the bread crumbs, cornmeal, garlic salt, and cayenne pepper (if you like it spicy). Mix the contents of this bowl with a fork.
- Begin dipping the onions, first in the almond milk batter, then in the bread crumb mixture, making sure the breadcrumbs stick to the onions and place in a silicone-lined or parchment paper-lined cookie sheet.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Place the onions on the cookie sheet, making sure not to overlap each other for even cooking.
- Cook for 30 minutes or until browned.
- I serve the baked onion rings with organic ketchup, but you can dip them in any dip you like, like vegan southwest dressing or vegan ranch dressing.
New air-fryer option

- When onion rings are breaded, place on a sheet pan and cook in air-fryer in batches.
- Then, place the onion rings in a single layer in the air fryer basket.
- You can put the smaller ring inside the larger ring if needed; Make sure there are gaps between them.
- Cook at 400°F until golden brown and crispy, about 11-15 minutes.
- Carefully lift the onion rings with a cookie spatula or fork and serve.
Recipe FAQs
Dip the onion first in the plant-milk mixture, then in the bread crumb mixture.
To get rid of the strong taste of onion rings, soak them in ice-cold water for at least 20 minutes or sprinkle them with vinegar.
Instead of being light and crisp, an onion ring with too much batter will retain too much internal moisture and the batter will start to soggy as it escapes from the oil.
advice
- Cut the onions to the same thickness so that the onion rings cook evenly.
- If using soy sauce or miso instead of nutritional yeast, mix it with plant milk instead of adding it to the bowl of dry ingredients.
- If you don’t have a microwave or choose not to use one, steam onions in salt.
- If air frying, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat an oven to 325 to keep cooked onion rings warm during batch cooking.
- Substitute cayenne pepper for any seasoning to enhance the flavor of baked onion rings.
- To reheat baked onion rings, reheat an oven to 350 and reheat on a baking sheet for 10 minutes. If air fried, preheat air fryer to 325 and reheat for 5 minutes.
If you love onion rings but want a healthier option, try baked ones. You will love these crispy onion rings.
Try this delicious vegan recipe!
If you like this Baked Onion Ring recipe, give us a 5-star review and comment below. We want to hear from you!
📖 Recipe

Baked Onion Rings
This baked onion ring recipe is oil-free and gluten-free. Make them spicy or keep them mild. These baked onion rings are crunchy on the outside and sand soft and delicate on the inside. Includes new air-fry option. Crunch away!
instructions
Cut the onion and separate the circles inside each onion slice; Place in a microwave-safe container.
Salt generously and toss with your hands.
Cook in the microwave for 5 minutes, covering with a paper towel to prevent splatter.
Wash onion in water several times and drain well.
Place on paper towels and pat dry; Discard paper towels.
Take out two separate deep bowls and place them on a flat surface.
Using a 1 cup blender, combine the almond milk, nutritional yeast, and flour. Blend until smooth. It will be like pancake batter.
Then, using a second bowl, combine the bread crumbs, cornmeal, garlic salt, and cayenne pepper (if you like it spicy). Mix the contents of this bowl with a fork.
Begin dipping the onions, first in the almond milk batter, then in the bread crumb mixture, so that the bread crumbs stick to the onions.
Place on a silicone-lined or parchment paper-lined cookie sheet.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Place the onions on the cookie sheet, making sure not to overlap each other for even cooking.
Cook for 30 minutes or until browned.
I served the baked onion rings with organic ketchup, but you can dip them in any dip.
Air-fryer cooking option
Prepare onions in the same way as the baked option.
Then, place the batter and breaded onion rings in a single layer in the air fryer basket.
You can put the smaller ring inside the larger ring if needed; Make sure there are gaps between them.
Cook at 400°F until golden brown and crispy, about 11-15 minutes.
Carefully lift the onion rings with a cookie spatula or fork and serve.
Comment
- Cut the onions to the same thickness so that the onion rings cook evenly.
- If using soy sauce or miso instead of nutritional yeast, mix it with plant milk instead of adding it to the bowl of dry ingredients.
- If you don’t have a microwave or choose not to use one, steam onions in salt.
- If air frying, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat an oven to 325 to keep cooked onion rings warm during batch cooking.
- Substitute cayenne pepper for any spice to enhance the flavor of baked onion rings.
- To reheat baked onion rings, reheat an oven to 350 and reheat on a baking sheet for 10 minutes. If air fried, preheat air fryer to 325 and reheat for 5 minutes.
nutrition
Calories: 290kcalSugars: 59gProtein: 12gFat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fats: 1gSodium: 463mgPotassium: 643mgFiber: 13gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 626IUVitamin C: 7mgCalcium: 81mgIron: 6mg

Oh! My name is Kathy, I am a retired high school English teacher and vegan enthusiast and blogger. My entire blog is completely plant-based vegetarian. I truly believe that what we eat and how we live determines our health and the preservation of our planet! 🙂
Source link