Tricks against tears
Are you also crying over the cutting board when you chop an onion? Why is that and how do you keep it dry? Tricks against tears and other onion facts.
The most sold vegetable – if you look at the number of kilograms – is the onion in the Netherlands. Not surprising, because how many recipes don’t start with “cut an onion”?
Onions, like garlic, chives, leeks and shallots, belong to the garlic family. They already grew in China 3000 years ago, nowadays they are also grown extensively in the Netherlands. In addition to the regular onion with the golden-yellow skin, there are also spicy red and sweet onions.
Stem onion, spring onion, lettuce onion and spring onion are all four names for the same elongated, mild crop. The different names refer to the characteristics of this onion: they have a stem, are delicious in a salad and you usually buy them tied together in a bunch. Spring onions are harvested in the spring and are sometimes a bit thinner.
Sulfuric Acid Compound
Cutting an onion is often accompanied by stinging, tearing eyes. How did that happen? The cells of onions contain all kinds of substances, including the enzyme allinase and a sulfur-containing component. When you cut onions, you destroy the cells and add air. The allinase then reacts with the sulfur-containing component. An acid is formed which is converted by another enzyme into a gas, synpropanethial-S-oxide.
When this gas comes into contact with (eye) moisture, a sulfuric acid compound is formed. This irritates your eyes, which try to flush out the sulfuric acid by continuing tears.
Preventing Tears
There are a few tricks that prevent irritated eyes. Use a sharp knife. Hold the onion under water or under a running tap when you cut it, the gas will react with the water and not with your eye fluid, preventing it from reaching your eyes.
You can also put the onions in the fridge for a few hours before slicing or in the freezer for a few minutes, which makes the enzyme less active. Or put on diving or safety goggles, then the gas will certainly not come near your eyes.
keep your nose open
Onions contain a lot of fiber. It also contains vitamin C, potassium and calcium. In addition, onions contain quercetin, a flavonoid that can make an important contribution to the prevention of heart disease.
An outing also comes in handy when you have a cold. If you have a stuffy nose, it is usually difficult to fall asleep. Keep your nose open with an onion on your bedside table. Peel an onion, cut it into pieces or in half and place it on a saucer next to your bed.
Onions have one drawback: they cause a lot of gas in your gut, which causes rumbling in your stomach and… flatulence can take care of.
Cooking with onions
Buy onions that are firm, dry to the touch and have no offshoots. Keep them cool, dry and dark, but not in the fridge, they will keep for a few weeks. Remove the papery skin and possibly the skin underneath if it doesn’t look fresh. Cut off the top, but leave the bottom part for a while, as you can easily hold the onion. Cut the onion into rings or pieces and discard the bottom piece last.
Onions are delicious raw in salads, but you can also bake, stew, deep-fry them or use them in oven dishes or soups. Many recipes say “fruit the onion”. To fry is to fry gently in a little oil or butter, stirring continuously, until the onion is translucent (‘transparent’). This releases the flavor of the onion.
Recipes
- Persian onion soup with mint
- Red onion soup
- Crispy chickpea cookies with red onion chutney
-
Stew with mustard strips
- Tortilla with onion and chickpeas
