Does peeling and chopping onions brings tears to your eyes?
It certainly does mine – so, having sobbed my way through a particularly nasty onion chopping session today, I decided to look into solutions for this common problem!
Here’s the result…
My list of the Top Ten Ways To Peel Onions Without Crying
I haven’t tested them all yet, so if you try any and find that they work well, please do let me know!
And if you’d like to add any of your own to the list, please click ‘comments’ below and leave your tip!
- Peel and cut the onion under running water (this leaves the onion a bit mushy, so only try this one if you’re using the onion in a recipe where that won’t matter!)
- Chew gum (not sure why this one is believed to work – any thoughts?)
- Put the onions in the freezer half an hour before you plan to cut them – this seems to work very well!
- Hold several unlit matches between your teeth. Apparently, the sulfur in the tips of the matches will neutralize the sulfur gas emitted by the onions
- Sit a pot of steaming water on the counter top, right next to where you’ll be chopping the onions. Hopefully, the steam will prevent the sulfur gas from getting in your eyes
- Chop your onions near a burning flame from the stove top
- Use a very sharp knife – this is supposed to minimize the amount of sulfur gas released into the air
- Chop under your extractor fan – or, if you don’t have one – aim a regular fan at your face
- Wear swimming goggles (but make sure you can see what you’re doing!)
- Hold a thick slice of bread in your mouth – the theory is that it will absorb the fumes
If all else fails – chop the onions in a food processor… or ask your partner to do them for you!