How to cut onions and not cry: 10 tips from simple to weird

Wet, freeze, light a candle and put on glasses – how else to chop onions without tears.

How to cut onions without crying / Photo: Unsplash

Onion is an irreplaceable vegetable
in our cuisine, it is used in many dishes, giving them the right taste, piquancy, pungency and characteristic aroma.

But there is one problem during its preparation, which makes life difficult for everyone and brings to tears
. And these are real tears, in the truest sense of the word.

The fact is that onions contain sulfoxides of amino acids, which, being released and reacting with air, form volatile sulfur compounds
. It is this gas, when it enters the mucous membrane, that causes such a reaction in our body.

How to avoid crying while chopping onions?
There are many ways that the Internet is full of – from the really useful to the absurd and funny. But there is no smoke without fire, and they also help someone. Choose which one suits you.

How to cut onions so as not to cry: life hacks

  • Life hack 1. Water

More often soak the knife in cold water
. It is believed that water takes on sulfur, and you will have to cry less. You can also soak the peeled onion in cold water for a short time, but after that the taste of the onion will change.

  • Life hack 2. Cold

Half an hour before cooking put the onion in the fridge
or 10 minutes in the freezer. The cold prevents the release of sulfur compounds and there will be no tears. But keep in mind that the onion after that will delaminate and cut worse.

  • Life hack 3. Air

If a cutting onions next to an open window
, then fresh air will make acid fumes less concentrated. A fan will give a similar effect, dispersing air through the kitchen.

  • Life hack 4. Hood

The flow of onion air can be purposefully helped. Turn on the hood
and it will simply be carried out of the room.

  • Life hack 5. Fire

There is also such advice: near the plank on which you cut the onion, light a candle
. Fire destroys onion pairs, and the eyes will not water.

cutting onion, use a sharp knife
. A well-sharpened blade will reduce the degree of damage to the cells of the bulb, which will lead to a decrease in the excreted sulfur.

  • Life hack 7. Combine

The logic is simple: if there is not much onion, you can endure or apply one of the methods. But with a large number of onions it is easier run it through a closed grinder
in the form of a food processor with different types of cutting.

  • Life hack 8. Salt

Sprinkle some salt
on a cutting board – this will reduce the aggression of the onion.

  • Life hack 9. Chewing gum

People advise while slicing onions chew gum
. Another option – take water in your mouth
and keep it until you’re done.

  • Life hack 10. Points

Put on glasses while cooking – but not simple ones, but intended for swimming
. This works by protecting the eyes from exposure to the volatile sulfur, but leaving the nose and mouth vulnerable to the smell.

Earlier we talked about how to skin a fish: several options for cutting.

Source: Segodnya

Share this article:

Leave a Reply

most popular