Potato Rings on a Menu Monday

California, Domestic

Today, I’m linking up with The How To Mommy and Organizing Junkie for Menu Monday

After a whole lot of serious discussion, (involving a whole lot of meticulous pie charts made from a whole lot of painfully detailed spreadsheets), we have come to the decision that we’re going to be calling Los Angeles home for the foreseeable future. Of course this decision would have been a whole lot easier to arrive at if all we had to weigh was palm trees and beaches against pine trees and snow. I mention this to both explain my absence and to light a fire under me to post more shots of all we’ve been up to in California. More photos later this week, today is Menu Monday, so let’s get to it.

This Week’s Menu (Monday July 30 – Sunday August 5)

Monday – Chicken and Waffles (a la Roscoes) with Blueberry Pie for dessert

Tuesday – Chicken Pockets with Rice and Corn and Vanilla Cupcakes for dessert

Wednesday – Chicken Pieces, Onion Rings, Fries and Salad with Homemade Chocolate Pudding for dessert

Thursday – Spaghetti with Meatballs and Garlic Bread with Cinnamon Buns for dessert

Friday – Homemade Individual Pizzas and Calzones with Cheesy Bread and Chocolate Chip Cookies for dessert

Saturday – Breaded Cod with Green Beans and Rice and Chocolate Cupcakes for dessert

Sunday – Breaded Chicken Breasts with Bacon Mashed Potatoes and Corn on the Cob with Frosted Brownies for Dessert

This spiced up version of the buttermilk fried chicken I made a couple of months ago was the perfect partner to these hybrid french fry/onion ring creations, which are really just a potato-ed up version of my favorite Leek Ring recipe. I was originally inspired by this post over at Spoon Fork Bacon but I ended up going in a totally different direction because we decided we wanted more of an onion ring base. I will eventually try the original recipe!

potato rings and fried chicken pieces

Potato-y Onion Rings:
1 cup cornstarch
1 cup flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg
2 cooked and cooled potatoes, mashed
1 cup cold water
2 tablespoons oil
2 teaspoons parsley flakes
2 teaspoons steak seasoning (yes really)
3-4 onions, cut into rings
Chicken Pieces:
this recipe plus about 1 teaspoon chili powder and a few squirts of your favorite hot sauce
potato rings and fried chicken pieces
potato rings and fried chicken pieces
Just as with the original version of this recipe, fill a shallow(ish) bowl with the buttermilk and add the spices. Mix it up and plunk in your chicken. Let it sit in the fridge for about six hours. Once you’re ready to get frying heat your oil in a tall pot and get your coating ready, which is just the standard herbed flour mixture listed in the original recipe.
potato rings and fried chicken pieces
potato rings and fried chicken pieces
Shake off the excess buttermilk mixture and toss each piece of chicken in the flour mixture until it’s completely coated and then pop into the oil for about 6 minutes. I put about 10-15 pieces in at a time.
potato rings and fried chicken pieces
These go over really, really well at our house.
potato rings and fried chicken pieces
potato rings and fried chicken pieces
The potato rings are so simple it’s a little ridiculous. Literally mix all of the ingredients in a large bowl and coat your onions before putting them in the oil the same way as the chicken. The big difference here is watch them, do not make the mistake of turning your back for a second. They’re browned and ready in about a minute. That’s it! Then they can join their fried friends on some paper towel while one of your kitchen helpers makes a salad to redeem this meal a little. Unless they make a ceaser!
potato rings and fried chicken pieces
I had to make french fries too because the concept of these ‘potatoy onion rings’ was just too weird for the wee ones.
4 Comments

4 Comments

  1. Rona  •  Jul 30, 2012 @11:24 am

    Just stopping by from Organizing Junkie’s Menu Plan Monday!
    We made San Diego home for 13 years. Loved the climate, the community but the cost of living drove us out.
    It looks like it’s going to be in the low 100’s but humid in Las Vegas today.
    Your menu plan looks delicious!
    I hope you have a terrific week

    Thanks. We are all really loving it down here. I think it’s supposed to be 80 here today but the UV is crazy high!

  2. Rona  •  Jul 30, 2012 @11:25 am

    I’ll be looking forward to your photos of Los Angeles.

    We’ve been here for four months and I haven’t posted many of the zillion photos I have taken. I’ll have to get on that!

  3. Aren’t you clever with those onion rings! Nice. Visiting from Menu Plan Monday.

    Thanks! They’re super good!

  4. The How To Mommy  •  Jul 30, 2012 @6:40 pm

    I’ll be bookmarking the chicken and waffles for my husband. He loves that combo!

    I will try to get them up this week. So good and so fun!

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