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National Onion Rings Day

National Onion Rings Day is celebrated every year on June 22nd. Why? Why not celebrate these delicious battered and fried snacks? While there isn’t much information about how national onion ring day got started, we do have a little history about the onion ring itself to share with you. Here’s everything you need to know about onion rings and how to celebrate National Onion Ring Day.

National Onion Rings Day will next be celebrated on Saturday, June 22, 2024

National Onion Rings Day

History Of The Onion Ring

There are a few stories about how the onion ring got its start. One source says that onion rings originated in Britain when cookbook author John Mollard published a recipe in 1802 calling for onions, coated with a breading that included a bit of parmesan cheese, and fried in lard. Another source says that onion rings originated with thin Indian dish Pakora – a snack of vegetables coated in chickpea flour and then deep fried.

Here in the states, there are recipes for “french fried onions” that date back to 1908 in the Fort Wayne Sentinel, and 1910 in the New York Sun. But the first restaurant known to serve the now-popular deep fried onion ring as we know it is thought to be the Pig Stand, a Texas restaurant that opened in 1921.

In 1933, Crisco helped boost the popularity of onion rings by publishing an advertisement featuring onion rings and promoting their in-home kitchen prep using this glorious trans-fat filled lard alternative.

Despite how they got their start, they have become a popular staple on restaurant menus all over the world and are one of our favorite deep-fried finger foods.

Onion Rings Fun Facts

  • A&W Restaurants added onion rings to their menu in the 1960s and are credited for helping popularize the deep fried side.
  • McDonald’s briefly sold their own version of the onion ring, the onion nugget, but they were unsuccessful.
  • Burger King’s onion rings don’t actually contain real onions. They are made of breading with dehydrated onion and onion powder.
  • There are many variations of breading, but the two most popular are either flour based or breadcrumb based.
  • Some sources are now wrapping rings of onion in strips of bacon instead of using a breading.
  • The most popular dipping sauces for onion rings are ketchup, mayo (and sometimes a blend of the two), 1000 Island Dressing, ranch dressing, and BBQ sauce.
  • National Onion Ring Day was officially recognized by the National Onion Association in 2014.
  • Outback Steakhouse popularized a different form of deep fried onion with their popular Bloomin’ Onion.
  • Funyuns are a popular onion-flavored ring snack.
  • China is the worlds largest producer of onions.
  • Elba, New York is known as the onion capital of the world.
  • California produces more onions than any other state.
  • Libya consumes more onions per capita than any other country.
  • Egyptian Pharaohs were sometimes buried with onions because their rings symbolized eternal life.
  • Onion rings are best made with sweet onion varieties like Vidalia or Maui.
  • Fast food restaurants that serve onion rings include: Carl’s Jr./Hardee’s, Jack In The Box, White Castle, A&W, Cook Out, Dairy Queen, Culver’s, Whataburger, Sonic, Long John Silver’s, Fatburger.

How To Celebrate National Onion Rings Day

  • The obvious way to celebrate is to go out and order a basket of your favorite onion rings!
  • Try making your own onion rings at home.
  • Make air fryer onion rings.
  • Add onion rings to your favorite sandwich, burger, wrap, or salad.

What To Serve With Onion Rings

  • Hamburgers
  • Chicken Sandwiches
  • Wraps
  • Your favorite dip
  • Blackened or fried fish
  • Steak
  • Grilled Chicken
  • Chicken Wings
  • Potato Salad
  • Macaroni Salad
Monique McArthur
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