1large Vidalia oniontry to pick one that is long, not wide
1cupwhole milk
2Tbspbacon drippings
3crispy cooked bacon stripsfinely minced
1heaping cup all purpose flour
1tspbaking powder
1/2tsppaprika
Salt
Bacon Ranch Dipping Sauce:
1/3cuplow fat buttermilk
1/4cupsour cream
2Tbspmayo
2garlic clovespressed
1Tbspbacon drippings
2crispy cooked bacon stripsfinely minced
1Tbspminced fresh dill weed
1Tbspminced fresh parsley
Salt and fresh cracked black pepper
Instructions
Preheat oil in a pot, over medium heat.
Peel and slice whole onion to create rings. Peel off the little, clear membrane that is in between the onion rings.
In a medium mixing bowl whisk milk, bacon drippings, flour, baking powder, paprika and salt together until smooth.
Crumble crispy bacon strips and then mince them as finely as possible with a knife. Add minced bacon bits into the batter and mix until evenly incorporated.
Dip a few onion rings into the batter, covering it completely, and gently add them to the heated oil, once at a time. Cook onion rings in batches until deep golden. You will want to cook over medium heat that way batter doesn't get dark too fast, leaving you with a raw onion inside. Cooking it on medium heat for a longer period of time will cook the onion inside.
For dipping sauce: whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl, until all incorporated. Make sure to use the same method for mincing bacon as you did for onion rings.