Our Most Popular Recipe Last Week Is a Copycat Restaurant Favorite (And It’s Made in the Air Fryer!)

Onion rings—meet your match.

Looking for an appetizer that will really wow a crowd? We’ve got just the thing.

Our newest copycat recipe shot up the rankings last week, securing its spot in our top tier of party foods. It’s one of the best-known restaurant appetizers in the game, and now, you can easily make it homemade in the air fryer.

The Air Fryer Blooming Onion, fanned out with its crispy golden petals, is quite a stunning sight. But, once you taste the perfectly seasoned, sweet and savory onion fries, you’ll realize the recipe is an all-around winner.

A family recipe turned restaurant staple, the Bloomin’ Onion originated at the Outback Steakhouse in 1988 and has remained a menu icon ever since. It’s so popular in fact, that one out of every four appetizers ordered at the Australian-style steakhouse is a "Bloom," adding up to over 8 million onion orders each year.

We have several delicious recipe variations on our sight, but the biggest benefit of this new recipe is that it’s air fried instead of deep-fried. That means no grease splatters, no leftover stenches, and no vat of hot oil to deal with later. To us, there’s no comparison.

This golden brown and irresistible onion tastes incredibly close to its namesake but is made fresh in your very own kitchen. It’s a twist on a classic onion ring that’s just as much fun as a pull-apart bread. Plus, the copycat dipping sauce is just the spicy, creamy accompaniment you’d want, giving each crispy onion petal a rich and tangy finish.

So, prepare to be the talk of the party when you bring this eye-catching appetizer to the table.

How to Make an Air Fryer Blooming Onion

In this recipe, you’ll want to use the fattest onion you can find to amp up the wow factor. A large Vidalia onion is ideal because it’ll give you the sweetest and mildest onion flavor.

To create the iconic flower-like aesthetic, try to focus on creating even cuts. Most importantly, you don’t want to cut too far down into the onion as you core and slice it—only about three-quarters of the way through. Cut too deep, and the onion will likely fall apart as you handle it. Once the onion is cored and sliced into 16 even segments, carefully spread the petals apart to make sure each sliver can be individually coated in the crispy crust.

Pro tip: If you really want the onion petals to separate, some reviewers recommend soaking the onion in ice water for about an hour before battering.

Next, you’ll double-dredge the onion, transferring it back and forth between an egg wash and a flour-spice mixture. After a quick spritz with cooking spray, you'll send it off to the air fryer to cook at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 20 to 25 minutes. In the meantime, whip together the dipping sauce so it has time to chill in the fridge before serving. When it comes out hot and crispy, you can finish it off with a sprinkle of paprika for extra style points.

This impressive appetizer will be the first dish that disappears from the table—and we're warning you, you will be asked to make it again.

Get the Recipe: Air Fryer Blooming Onion