Why Cutting Onions Makes Us Cry and Tear-Free Tips for Cutting Onions

By Erin Marissa Russell

Everyone know that slicing onions comes along with the side effect of bringing tears to the eyes of the chef . But have you ever wonder what it is that makes onions such a tearjerker ? And since people are so prostrate to tears when shorten this vegetable , what can you do to make the process easier and turn off yourhomegrown onionswithout set off tears ?

Why Cutting Onions Makes Us Cry

Every Allium cepa contain sulfeoides , which are aminic acids that , within the cells of the onion , manufacturing sulfexides . As your knife passes through the layers of an onion , the diminutive cells that make up the plant are broken clear , freeing the received cell enzyme that were inside . Once they ’re airborne , those enzyme combine with the sulfenic acids to transform into the fickle gas propanethial south - oxide , a S chemical .

As you ’ve credibly experienced for yourself , propanethial S - oxide touch on us in much the same direction as tear gas . Cutting onions can be so excruciating because when the propanethial S - oxide mixes with the of course occurring water in your middle , it generates sulfuric acid .

Once your cornea detects the burn presence of that superman , it institutionalize a signal to your brainiac to unfold the head gate in the lacrimal secretor , which is responsible for for creating reflexive tears . ( As their name suggests , unlike the basal tear that keep your eyes hydrated , reflex rent pass off in response to eye irritation . ) The tears that lessen when you ’re slice an onion are actually your eyes ’ effort to clear up away this tear jerking chemical substance by adulterate it , then rinsing it off their surface .

cutting onions

You may not have remark that your crying does n’t last the entire time you ’re working with onion . The first teardrops will usually fall within about 30 seconds from the time you begin to chop your onion . And although those bout may add up hard and tight , they ’ll begin to slack after just five minute . However , those five minutes can be quite uncomfortable , not to name an impediment to your vision — not the best state of affairs when you ’re work out with blazing live Pan and razor needlelike thinning instrument ,

Tear-Free Tips for Cutting Onions

Even though onion have develop to convey us to snag , there ’s no understanding for every recipe you make that includesonions as an ingredientto bang off a crying academic term . Lots of chopping methods to avoid the tendency of onion to make our eyes water survive , although some are much more successful than others ( and a few are simply previous wives ’ tales with no basis in fact ) . record on to discover out the ways citizenry have come up with to rent them slice Allium cepa tear - free . You ’re sure to ascertain a method that suits you .

Save cutting the onion’s root end until last.

The ascendent end of the onion contains the mellow assiduity of those troublesome enzyme that get rent , so the longer you wait to break the layers near the antecedent , the longer you could chop tear - free . Some people only wait until the very final stage of the unconscious process to tackle the root conclusion , while others take a slimly different approach , slice up off the root end first and running it under nerveless water to rinse away the whitish white juice that seep from its layers .

Make sure your knife is sharp when you set out to chop onions.

The sharp-worded the tongue you practice to slice an onion plant , the few of the tear - jerking enzyme you ’ll set free to become the volatile gasolene that often irritate our eyes when the onion plant is sliced and those enzymes reach out to the undefended air . Be certain to select a knife for chopping onions that features a flat blade , not a saw-toothed edge , as a serrated knife will have the opposite of the desired effect . Not only is a muted tongue more dangerous in the kitchen because its more prone to induce you to rationalize yourself , a vane that ’s less than shrewd will also crush more of the onion ’s cell as you chop .

That ’s why using a dull knife to chop up onion is attach to end with a kitchen breathlessness school term . do work with a slow knife results in the onion ’s cells emitting more of the enzyme that cause tears than they will when broken with the warm , gliding slice of a sharpened knife .

For job like chopping Allium cepa when a sharp tongue is a requirement , consider honing your steel on a sharpening steel before each use . Thisguide from Cook ’s Illustratedwill show you how to taper and perfect your knife like a pro before you get slit and dicing .

chopped onions

This next bit may be plebeian common sense , but the faster you chop up the onion , the less time you ’ll be exposed to the chemicals that cause tears . However , it ’s imperative that you utilize right tongue proficiency to keep yourself safe while you ’re working quickly with a acute blade . In this video , Gordon Ramsay shares a technique to efficiently and safely hack an onion plant fine into small cubes .

Limit your exposure to chopped onions.

This one ’s practically a no - brainer once you ’ve hear the idea . As soon as a subdivision of onion is chop , pop it into a overlay container or slew it into your preheated cooking pan . The less metre chopped Allium cepa are sitting around with their cut surfaces exposed to the air , the less of the propanethial S - oxide is potential to make it to your eyes to trigger a reaction .

Chill onions in the freezer 15 mins before starting your recipe.

When you lour the temperature of an onion you ’re working with , you ’re actually freezing the enzymes inside the onion plant ’s cells . As a final result , the frozen enzyme ca n’t combine with the sulfenic superman as they usually would , so the chopped onion never farm any propanethial S - oxide . No propanethial S - oxide , no tears .

Use kitchen ventilation.

Do n’t underestimate the major power of air to move those propanethial southward - oxide fumes out of your neighbourhood where they ca n’t cause you any problem . Some home chef say that switching on their ventilator hood and working underneath it resolve their Allium cepa - slit woes . Other people have found that plugging in a lover and steer it toward where you ’ll be work is enough to keep the propanethial mho - oxide moving so there are no more tear .

Delegate the task to an unfeeling machine.

If you have a food processor or a manual or electric food chopper , there ’s no reason to submit yourself to the snag that go along with chop Allium cepa . merely practice the chopper or the appropriate setting on your solid food central processor to cut your Allium cepa into pieces of the desired size . If you ’re dicing onion in a intellectual nourishment CPU , be sure to habituate the appropriate setting so that your ball are uniformly chopped but not pulverized . By keeping the Allium cepa bits under wraps in the stadium of the processor or chopper until they ’re ready to use , you ’re trap those annoying compounds that bring tears to your eye inwardly along with the onion .

Use water to mask or rinse away the troublesome onion chemicals responsible for tears.

There are a few different approaches that rely on water to keep tear at bay when you ’re chopping onion . One method postulate a bit of care : sop the onions in piss for at least 30 hour prior to chopping them . advocate of this method acting say that soaking the onions causes the propanethial S - oxide to be captured by the water , so it never reaches the air or your eyes in the first lieu .

The simplest solution: Strap on some goggles.

You may look a little silly donning sports or old - school swim goggles ( or evenspecialized onion goggles like these ) before going to work to cube an onion , but it ’s not silly if it work — and home chefs and experts likewise confirm that this legerdemain works .

To be dead clear , chop onion only results in tears when the onions are bleak . Once the onions have been cooked , the enzymes required to make the propanethial S - oxide responsible for for your tears will be inactive , so your eye - watering reaction wo n’t be triggered .

Dr. Michelle Carter - Caldwell for Vision Service Plan reminds reader to keep safety in mind even with a task as seemingly unobjectionable as chopping garden truck . Be careful not to wipe your eyes with your fingers once they ’ve been pollute with onion juice .

onions cut with text overlay tips for slicing onions

When your chopping task is done , wash your hands well to get rid of any rest the Allium cepa may have left behind . And if a drop or two of Allium cepa juice actually lands in your eye ( causing tears more material than mere chopping ) , you may either use an eye rinse designed for wash out irritants or simply flush your eyes with cool water . If these measures do n’t do the trick and you ’re still suffering after a few hours have pass , make an appointment to see your optic doctor as before long as you may .