In Tears...and its CQs fault

Rave

The trick is to use a really really sharp knife. The paring knives I use I got in a pack of five from a pound shop. I just give them a quick going over with the steel before I chop an onion and I don't usually suffer too badly. The chemical that makes you cry (it's actually the same stuff they use in tear gas) is released when the onion cells are torn open, so the sharper your knife is the fewer cells are damaged when you're chopping up the onion, and so the less tear gas gets released.

Incidentally, to have an effect the gas has to dissolve in the water in your eye, so I guess to certain extent contact lenses reduce the amount that can be absorbed.

Str4berr3

Rave wrote:

The trick is to use a really really sharp knife. The paring knives I use I got in a pack of five from a pound shop. I just give them a quick going over with the steel before I chop an onion and I don't usually suffer too badly. The chemical that makes you cry (it's actually the same stuff they use in tear gas) is released when the onion cells are torn open, so the sharper your knife is the fewer cells are damaged when you're chopping up the onion, and so the less tear gas gets released.

Incidentally, to have an effect the gas has to dissolve in the water in your eye, so I guess to certain extent contact lenses reduce the amount that can be absorbed.

Yep, I think that was exactly what I was trying to say.

se999

The trick I was told for onions was always to breath through your mouth, not your nose, I assume something to do with detecting the smell causing the reaction (yes it might look like a goldfish impersonation).

Also never to wipe your eyes even if they do start running.

For chilli I was told that you need to use soap to clean your hands afterwards, because it's actually an oil that causes the problem, so you need the soap to break it down.

Don't know if these are scientifically accurate, but they work for me.

Wirenth

Hoooowwwwl. :rotfl:

Lol.

How many bizarre ways to cut onions?! Reminds me of when I was younger, trying to avoid the onion crying jag. I'd put a pair of swimming goggles on whilst chopping...never worked. Was still in floods of tears and couldn't see because the lenses had misted up! :rotfl:

On the chilli front - coat your hands (especially under the fingernails) with oil before chopping. It makes it easier to get the stuff off afterwards...

squeaky

I wouldn't feel at all happy wielding a sharp knife with oil covered hands. :eek: I'm far too accident prone

Wirenth

squeaky wrote:

I wouldn't feel at all happy wielding a sharp knife with oil covered hands. :eek: I'm far too accident prone

Sorry! Clarification, oil under fingernails of both hands and smeared over the hand holding the chilli down on the chopping board. I use a serrated knife with a textured grip, so it never slips. But don't coat the palm of your 'cutting hand'!

Some chillis, like Scotch bell peppers, you need to coat both hands and shove your hands in some gloves before cutting the chilli, its that strong.

Curry_Queen

I'm amazed at how many people actually have problems with peeling onions! Unless they're particularly strong, as I mentioned earlier with some of the small organic ones I've had recently, and even then that only caused my eyes to cloud over with tears initially, but as a rule I never really have a problem with them

I'd say my eyes are usually quite sensitive too, especially to bright lights, cigarette smoke, aerosols etc so I really have no idea why onions don't have the same effect on me!

squeaky

Probably because you've got onion juice flowing in your veins after all the curry base you've eaten over the years

catznine

I find that chewing gum while chopping onions stops the tears! Don't know why that works tho.

BountyHunter

The slice of bread trick works for me (failing that I make DH do it with his contacts in!).

As far as the smell on your hands for both onions & chillies I've been told somewhere to wash hands with cold water & soap as hot water opens the pores and the once they are closed the smell is trapped in the pores.

I'm sure Kim & Aggie suggest rubbing your hands on a stainless steel tap as well- or was that to get rid of garlic?