Guy Fieri Rojo Onion Rings Recipe
February 16, 2017

Dish it Up: Guy Fieri’s Rojo Onion Rings Recipe

Guy Fieri dishes it up for Carnival Cruise Line

By Janice Wald Henderson

The first burger I demolished from platinum blonde, spiky-haired Food Network star Guy Fieri is burned in my culinary conscious. With beefy juice dripping down my chin, the improbably named Donkey Sauce slicking my fingers, and shaved sweet onions tumbling onto my blouse, all I could do was grin and gobble. These burgers can rock your world.

Luckily for cruisers and Fieri devotees, Carnival Cruise Line partners with the popular chef for its onboard Guy’s Burger Joint. The complimentary eatery, currently on 14 Carnival ships, serves a whopping 1,000 burgers per ship per day. I bet some Fieri fans actually choose their Carnival ship based on whether the star’s patty palace is on board. Here’s the skinny on Guy Fieri and his wildly popular shipboard eats.

What the Heck Is Donkey Sauce?

Crazy name, yummy creation. Donkey Sauce, made with roasted garlic, mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, hot dog mustard, kosher salt, and black pepper, is one distinguishing signature of many Guy’s Burger Joint hamburgers. Chefs smear this creamy garlicky blend on both halves of toasted buns.

Patty Peeps, Listen Up

  1. Want to avoid the inevitably long lines at Guy’s Burger Joint? Then arrive just before the opening hour of 11 a.m. or come after 2 p.m. Stay away when passengers return from all day in port, when it’s typically extremely busy.
  2. Turns out Guy’s Burger Joint loves vegetarians, albeit discreetly. Although veggie burgers aren’t on the menu, they’re happily made upon request.
  3. Go for SMC sauce. It stands for Super Melty Cheese, a thickened American cheese sauce flavored with grated nutmeg that’s delish on cheeseburgers.

King of Rings: Rojo Onion Rings Recipe

We’ve got the recipe for Fieri’s super-crunchy, somewhat fiery, and seriously addictive onion rings.

Ingredients

  • 1 quart Canola oil
  • ¾ cup hot sauce (Sriracha)
  • 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
  • 1 1/3 cups ketchup
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • ½ cup all-purpose flour
  • 4 cups panko breadcrumbs
  • 2 large sweet onions (Vidalia, Walla Walla, or Maui) cut ¾-inch thick, with center cores discarded
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt

Method
In a heavy-bottom skillet or deep fryer, heat the oil to 360 degrees F. Line a plate with paper towels and have a baking sheet handy. In a shallow bowl, combine the Sriracha hot sauce, garlic, ketchup, and 2 teaspoons of water until blended.
Place the buttermilk, flour, and panko into three separate bowls and place them in this work order: buttermilk, flour, Sriracha mixture, panko. Soak the onion rings in the buttermilk for at least 30 minutes. Dip the onion rings into the flour, then the Sriracha mixture, and finish with the panko. Set aside on the baking sheet as you finish. Let them set up for 10 to 20 minutes in the refrigerator before frying. (The batter sticks better that way.)

Working in batches, deep-fry the onion rings for about three minutes or until they start to brown. Turn as needed. As you finish, transfer them to the paper towel–lined plate and sprinkle with sea salt. Serve immediately.

RELATED: Carnival Shares Famous Guy Fieri Burger Recipe

Smoke Signals

Sailing on Carnival Magic, Carnival Vista, Carnival Dream, or Carnival Breeze this year? Follow your nose to Guy’s Pig & Anchor Bar-B-Que Smokehouse. This open-air super-casual eatery showcases….

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Photo: Guy Fieri

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Judi Cuervo is a New York City native who fell in love with cruising in 1976 during her first sailing aboard Carnival Cruises’ Mardi Gras. Twenty years later, she began her freelance cruise writing gig and, since that time, has covered mass market, ultra-premium, riverboat and expedition ships for regional, national and international publications as well as cruise websites.

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