Buttermilk Fried Spring Onions
Every time I visit my local Mexican grocery store, I tend to shop around after devouring some tacos. I get the staples which typically include limes, cilantro, garlic, chilies, avocados, and tortillas. I my often look at the other great produce and always look at the great large spring onions. These are not your typical green onions that you find in most markets. These are the ones where the bulb is about 5 times larger than a standard green onion. They are known as spring onions, and as they look much like a scallion, they have just a bit more of a bite. This is when I decided to pick up a bunch and head home.
At first I was going to lube them up with some olive oil and salt, and toss them on the grill, but I figured my recent Mexican alambre had enough going on in terms of peppers, onions, and chilies, so I held off only to soak them in buttermilk and batter them the following day. These things were awesome, and now I know that I will be buying more of these spring onions!
Let’s get started:
- 1 bunch of spring onions, tips and tails trimmed
- 2 cups of buttermilk
- 2 tbsp gochujang paste
- 2 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- pinch of salt
- pinch of cracked black pepper
- 1 cup of cooking oil
Start by adding the spring onions to a sealable bag. Pour in the buttermilk, seal, and let it marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Â Next, add the gochujang and mayonnaise to a small bowl, and use a fork to blend the two together. Cover and place in the refrigerator until ready for use.
The following day, add the flour, salt and pepper to a mixing bowl. Give a good stir. Take the spring onions, draining them from the buttermilk, and add them to the bowl.
Give a good toss to make sure the onions are well coated, then heat up a skillet on medium heat, adding in the oil.
Once the oil comes to temperature, about 350 degrees, gently add in a few spring onions. Cook for a couple of minutes per side (if not fully submerged), until the batter is golden brown. Once golden, remove with some tongs and place on a paper lined plate to remove any excess oil. Season with a pinch of salt. Repeat.
To your serving plate, take the gochujang and mayonnaise mixture, and with a spoon smear it onto the center of the serving plate.
Line up the fried spring onions on top of the sauce, and serve.
My wife, who was hesitant of the mayonnaise mixture, was swiping that spring onion, and biting into the perfectly cooked onion. The onion was nice and crispy on the exterior, while warm and cooked through (not limp) on the inside, and well, the gochujang and mayonnaise mixture just took it one step further.
The only downside to this recipe is that I did not make about 4 bunches of spring onions. Now I know! Hope you enjoy!
Buttermilk Fried Spring Onions
Ingredients
- 1 bunch of spring onions tips and tails trimmed
- 2 cups of buttermilk
- 2 tbsp gochujang paste
- 2 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- pinch of salt
- pinch of cracked black pepper
- 1 cup of cooking oil
Instructions
- Start by adding the spring onions to a sealable bag. Pour in the buttermilk, seal, and let it marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Next, add the gochujang and mayonnaise to a small bowl, and use a fork to blend the two together. Cover and place in the refrigerator until ready for use.
- The following day, add the flour, salt and pepper to a mixing bowl. Give a good stir. Take the spring onions, draining them from the buttermilk, and add them to the bowl.
- Give a good toss to make sure the onions are well coated, then heat up a skillet on medium heat, adding in the oil.
- Once the oil comes to temperature, about 350 degrees, gently add in a few spring onions. Cook for a couple of minutes per side (if not fully submerged), until the batter is golden brown. Once golden, remove with some tongs and place on a paper lined plate to remove any excess oil. Season with a pinch of salt. Repeat.
- To your serving plate, take the gochujang and mayonnaise mixture, and with a spoon smear it onto the center of the serving plate.
- Line up the fried spring onions on top of the sauce, and serve.
One Comment
Laurie
I received these in my farm box and was wondering how to use them aside from grilling. We also can get them in most regular grocery stores around here and are called Mexican onions so I won’t need to always wait for my farm box. Thanks!