Cut an Onion Without Crying
My five-year-old son loves to help me in the kitchen. As soon as he sees me heading that way, he grabs the stepstool and drags it to the counter and starts putting on his Home Depot apron. Unfortunately, lately, most of our dinner recipes have started with “chop an onion,” and he instantly starts rubbing his eyes from the sting of me chopping, and his interest in helping me is quelled quickly.
A recent issue of Vegetarian Times magazine offered up a few tips on how to chop an onion without crying, and I’m definitely going to be putting these to the test next time.
- Chill out. Put onions in the freezer 10 minutes before peeling and slicing. The cold minimizes volatile sulfur oils (the buggers responsible for activating your tear ducts).
- Think sharp. Slice and chop with the sharpest knife in your block. Dull blades crush the onion cells instead of cutting them, releasing more acidic chemicals into the air.
- Open wide. Breathe through your mouth - inhaling through your nose lets more fumes get into your sinuses.
- Avoid the roots. Most sulfuris compounds live in the root of an onion, so avoid releasing them into the air too soon by cutting the roof off last thing.
Photo from MorgueFile.com.
