Onion Ring Chips

Method

1. slice6 min
   onion rounds uniformly about 1/8 inch thick
   Slice the onions into very thin even rounds, ideally with a mandoline, and separate only loose rings. Uneven slices shed moisture at different rates and leave some pieces soft before others brown.
2. assemble3 min
   Parmesan forms a thin even sheet with minimal gaps
   On a parchment-lined sheet pan, spread the Parmesan into a restrained single layer roughly matching the area the onions will cover. Thick piles melt oily before they can form a crisp lace.
3. assemble3 min
   onion rounds lie flat in one non-overlapping layer
   Arrange the onion slices over the Parmesan without overlapping, then brush or drizzle very lightly with olive oil and season with garlic, paprika and pepper. Too much oil slows dehydration.
4. bake20 min
   cheese deeply golden and onion edges browned
   Bake at 400°F until the Parmesan is deeply golden and the onion moisture has visibly cooked away. Judge by browning rather than the clock because cheese moisture and slice thickness vary.
5. cool7 min
   cheese sheet firm and crisp enough to lift
   Leave the pan undisturbed after baking. The cheese matrix crisps dramatically as it cools; handling it hot bends or tears chips that would otherwise set cleanly.
6. cut2 min
   crisp Parmesan-onion pieces separate cleanly
   Break or cut the cooled sheet into chip-sized pieces. The crispness comes primarily from browned Parmesan surrounding a dehydrated onion slice, not from pretending the onion itself becomes a potato chip.