Keep the Tears at Bay When Chopping Onions - Tip of the Day

by Alexa Weibel, Posted Jan 7th 2010 @ 9:00AM

Do you love the taste of caramelized onions but have trouble getting through the chopping process without tears? Ease your pain with two easy tips.

Onion rings. Photo: Tres.Jolie, Flickr.

When chopped, onions release enzymes that turn into pesky gases. To counter irritation, your eyes water in efforts of cleansing. But why brave the nuisance?

Onion goggles may be helpful, but who wants to look like a wild scientist when concocting a delicious meal? Following more serious, sage advice, we still maintain the power of breathing through your nose when cutting particularly pungent onions, but there are two other options to avoiding tears.

Chilling for a couple hours before chopping works wonders to reduce the fumes -- but don't keep your onions refrigerated for too long or they'll spoil faster from the moisture.

The most important tip when slicing onions is to use a sharp knife. The irritating sulfuric compounds released during dicing will be lessened -- and your eyes will be spared those pesky tears.

Filed Under: Tip of the Day
Tags: chopping onions, cutting onions, onions