Cutting onions without tears: these are the best tips

If you like to eat onions, you can cut the vegetables without shedding tears. With the right tips, cutting works without a handkerchief and you keep a clear view.

Cutting onions - you can do that without tears

Two substances in the onion are responsible for the flow of tears: the enzyme alliinase and the sulfur-containing amino acid aliin. What should protect the onion from being eaten brings tears to our eyes when we cut an onion. With the following tips, preparation works without water in the eyes.

• The first measure starts with peeling the onion. It is best to do this in a bowl full of water or under running water. The water protects you from the tearful substances.
• If you then put the peeled onion in water for ten minutes, the subsequent cutting is easier. The disadvantage of this method: the onions lose some of their aroma.
• With a sip of water in your mouth while cutting onions, no tears flow either. It has not yet been clarified why this is so.
• Alternatively, when cutting onions, breathe through your mouth and best pinch off your nose. Even then you will have to cry less when cutting onions.
• Cut the onion on a wet wooden board, this measure is easy on your eyes. If you use a knife that is as sharp as possible, the secretion of the tear-promoting substances is reduced.
• Make yourself comfortable when cutting onions: sit with your face not directly over the onions. The lovely mixture can not easily get into your eyes.
• The most effective protection against tears when cutting onions is surely wearing safety glasses. The best way to do this is to use simple swimming or diving goggles. This may not look great, but it is more pleasant than weeping eyes.

If the healthy vegetables are shredded without tears, we will show you in the next article how to steam onions on a glassy basis.