Onions are a tasty addition to nearly any dish! They add a burst of tangy flavor when added raw, and smell divine when they are cooking. The only problem is getting through the chopping and dicing without looking like you just landed a role in a dramatic telenovela.
In the video below, Jack Show tells you exactly how to keep your eyes from tearing up. Show points out that the part of the onion that makes you cry is the root portion, located at the bottom of the onion. The root actually releases a gas that makes you tear up! Check out the video to see how to pull that root out!
Don't feel like digging in with your paring knife, or you're worried you are wasting a bit too much onion? A few other tips that work well include:
Cut underwater: Fill a wide, shallow bowl high enough to cover most of the onion. Submerge the onion and dice away. If you do choose this method, be
very careful. The water can make your knife slippery which could lead to slices and dices in your finger.
Nuke it: Cook your onion in the microwave for about 30 seconds before cutting it. This can help reduce eye irritation.
The Daily Meal recommends not trimming the ends off first as this can make the irritation worse.
Hold bread in your mouth: Put a slice of bread in your mouth to absorb the irritating compounds from the onion. Alternatively, you could put an unlit match in your mouth (like a straw). The red part of the match soaks up the irritating chemicals from the onion before they make you cry.
Cool it off: Store your onion in the fridge for about 15 minutes to several hours before chopping to significantly reduce eye irritation.
Use a fan: Chop your onion on the stove with the vent running or run a fan nearby to blow the irritating chemicals away.
Keeping onions fresh is just as important as keeping the tears at bay. Onions can last for several weeks if they are stored properly. Ditch the plastic bags you buy them in at the store. This keeps chemicals to close to this veggie, and they go bad faster.
Want a master tip for making your onions last an impossibly long time? The
Yummy Life swears by this hack her passed down through the generations. You'll need brown paper lunch bags, a hole punch, and a paper clip.
Fold your bag in half long-ways and punch holes through one edge about 1 inch apart. Flip the bag over and do the other side. You'll have several rows of holes. Fill the bag half full with onions (or garlic), fold it over and close it with the paper clip. Easy, peasy.
Do your friends tear up just at the sight of onions? Share these tips with them and help keep their eyeballs (and yours) safe the next time you chop up an onion.
