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1
Bring a medium pot of well-salted water to a boil.
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2
Toss in the cipolline and cook for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender.
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3
Drain and let cool.
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4
(While these are cooling, I suggest you save time and whip up your aioli.
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5
BTW, this is multitasking!)
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6
When the onions are cool enough to handle, use a paring knife to peel off the outer skin and trim the hairy root end; reserve.
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7
To make the tempura batter, combine the flour, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl.
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8
Add the cold (seriouslyice-cold!)
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9
sparkling water and mix until a loose batter forms; dont worry about the lumps.
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10
When youre ready to cook, pour the peanut oil into a large saucepan over medium-high heat; the oil should come 1 1/2 to 2 inches up the sides of the pan.
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11
To see if its hot enough, drop a couple of little batter balls into it.
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12
If they sizzle and float quickly, youre good to go.
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13
If the batter burns or the oil begins to smoke, its too hot, so reduce the heat.
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14
While the oil heats, set up your drying situation next to the stove by putting a couple layers of paper towels on a baking sheet.
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15
Dip and coat each of the onions in the tempura batter, then add them one at a time to the oil.
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16
Work in batchesyou dont want to overcrowd the panand fry them until the batter is crisp but still pale and golden.
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17
Remove the onions from the oil and salt these puppies immediately.
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18
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the egg yolks, vinegar, garlic, and red pepper and process until combined.
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19
Then, with the machine running, begin to add the oil a drop at a timeyou want to do this slowly in the beginning until the mixture begins to thicken and look homogeneous.
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20
Once this happens, add the remaining oil in a thin stream until it is all combined; taste and season with salt.
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21
Serve the garlicky mayonnaise with the crispy sweet onions.
