Outback Steakhouse Bloomin' Onion
from www.topsecretrecipes.com, modified with Bloomin' Onion recipe from https://kentrollins.com/ (Cowboy Kent)

Bloom Sauce for Dipping
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons ketchup
2 tablespoons cream-style horseradish
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
Dash ground black pepper
Dash cayenne pepper

Cowboy Keny's Dipping Sauce
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon ketchup
2 tablespoons horseradish
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Prepare the dipping sauce by combining all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Keep the sauce covered in your refrigerator until needed.

The Onion
1 jumbo sweet yellow or white onion (3/4 pound or more), such as Vidalia or Texas Sweet

Wet Batter:
1 cup milk
2 large eggs

Dry Batter:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cornstarch plus more for sprinkling
1/2 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
1/8 teaspoon cumin

Vegetable oil for frying

1. Prepare the dipping sauce by combining all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Keep the sauce covered in your refrigerator until needed so the flavors meld.

2. Beat the eggs and combine them with the milk in a medium bowl big enough to hold the onion.

3. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, peppers, paprika, oregano, thyme, and cumin.

4. Now it's time to slice the onion - this is the trickiest step. Cut the top of the onion about 1/2 inch down to make it set level (not the root end, the end that had the green growing from it). Peel the skin from the onion and place the uncut root side up. With a sharp knife, make 6 cuts about 1/2 inch down from the root end. Then rotate and make cuts in between the first cuts. Be sure not to cut too close to the root. With your hands, spread the cut onion slices apart to resemble a bloom.

[If you prefer to cut from the top, place some sticks or something, about 1/2 inch thick on either side of the onion when cutting down, so you do not slice through the bottom.]

Sprinkle the onion lightly with cornstarch. Dusting the onion with corn starch will help dry out the onion and will help the batter stick better.

Dip the onion in the milk mixture, and then coat it liberally with the dry ingredients. Separate the "petals" and sprinkle the dry coating between them. Once you're sure the onion is well-coated, dip it back into the wet mixture and into the dry coating again. This double dipping makes sure you have a well-coated onion because some of the coating tends to come off when you fry. Let the onion rest in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes while you get the oil ready. [It should be set to dry for longer, like several hours, so the moisture evaporates and the breading dries into a harder shell which doesn't come off as much in the fryer.]

Add enough oil to a deep Dutch oven or pot that the onion can be fully submerged and heat to 375 degrees F. If you end up having to flip the onion around it will be unevenly cooked and will fall apart. Gently shake the excess flour off the onion and using a large spoon or spider gingerly place it, right side up, in the oil. Make sure the onion is covered well with oil to ensure an equal fry time on all parts. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes or until a deep golden brown and crispy.

Remove from the deep fryer and place on a wire rack to cool for a few minutes. Open the onion wider from the center so that you can put a small dish of the dipping sauce in the center. Serve warm with dipping sauce.

[From a reddit post: "I worked at Outback as a hostess for a bit, so take this with a grain of salt. I wasn’t handling recipes but I saw a lot of the prep work. One of the first things the kitchen started in the morning was those onions. Make sure you slice from the top and leave the root intact, so the onion doesn’t break apart. They left about half an inch of root. They would cut and dredge them with flour in the morning, and then leave them upside down (root up) on trays in the walk-in fridge until service. Then we’d roll out a big shelf of the trays and start battering them and dropping them per order. I think the extra chill time with flour and paprika dredge helped keep them together."

Another poster said, "I learned how to make these way back in 1990 working fry side in the kitchen at a Chili's in Lafayette, Louisiana, The dry batter was flour and cornstarch with garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. The wet batter was 2 eggs, a few good dashes of Crystal's Garlic and a little milk. The dip - mustard, mayo, and chili sauce."

From Google AI: "Blooming: Soaking the cut onion in cold water for a period helps the petals separate naturally without breaking off. Battering: The separated onion is then coated in a multi-step process, typically involving a seasoned flour mixture (featuring paprika, cayenne pepper, and other spices) and an egg/buttermilk wash. The double-dipping process ensures a thick, crispy crust."
- Soaking the onion is an easy trick to reduce some of the acidity and sharp bite. Cold water will also encourage the petals to separate on their own.]