Why do onions make you cry?

[Naheezah]

Why do onions make you cry?
As any chef knows, cooking an onion produces a very strong aroma that most people enjoy. But cutting up an onion stings your eyes and makes you tear up uncontrollably. If you love to include onions in your dishes, you're probably frustrated by this all the time. So just what is it in onions that make them such an ordeal to prepare? When you slice through an onion, you break open a number of onion cells. Some of these cells have enzymes inside of them, and when they are sliced open, the enzymes escape. The enzymes then decompose some of the other substances that have escaped from sliced cells. Some of these substances, amino acid sulfoxides, form sulfenic acids, which then quickly rearrange themselves into a volatile gas.
The gas reaches your eyes and reacts with the water that keeps them moist. This changes the chemical's form again, producing, among other things, a mild sulfuric acid, which irritates the eyes. The nerve endings in your eyes are very sensitive and so they pick up on this irritation (this is why our eyes sting when we slice onions). The brain reacts by telling your tear ducts to produce more water, to dilute the irritating acid so the eyes are protected. Your other reaction is probably to rub your eyes, but this will actually make the irritation a lot worse, of course, if you have onion juices all over your hands.
Oddly enough, this volatile compound is also responsible for a lot of the great taste in onions, as well as the pleasant aroma when you cook the vegetable. You'll also get sulfenic acids by cutting up garlic, chives and leeks, among other vegetables, but they don't form the same irritating gas, just a strong smell.
There are all kinds of remedies for dealing with this irritating phenomenon, some more effective than others. As a general rule, move your head as far away from the onion as you can, so the gas will mostly disperse before it reaches your eyes. If you really can't stand the tears, the simplest solution might be to wear goggles. This measure is very effective, but it may seem a bit extreme to those around you, and if your kitchen is steamy, you might not be able to see what you're doing (never a good idea when you're using a knife).
Peeling the onion and then chilling it in the refrigerator before you slice it will minimize the release of gas somewhat, because the change in temperature alters the compounds in the onion. Cooking an onion before you slice it will work also, for the same reason. Another easy solution is to cut the onion under water or run the tap over it as you slice.
Some people say if you hold a lemon, piece of bread or a sugar cube in your mouth, the food will absorb the gas before it reaches your eyes. Breathing with your mouth, instead of your nose, might also help because as you inhale, you suck the gas in and as you exhale, you blow it away. This keeps a lot of the gas from ever reaching your eyes.:statisfie

[umm-sulaim]

I dunno if this is true to many (or true at all ;D) but some people don't cry when they cut onions, n when i asked how come, they said it's cos they're used to it :?

I heard that when u do cry something (probably the enzyme stuff) cleanses the eye :X

wassalaam

[Woodrow]

I dunno if this is true to many (or true at all ;D) but some people don't cry when they cut onions, n when i asked how come, they said it's cos they're used to it :?

I heard that when u do cry something (probably the enzyme stuff) cleanses the eye :X

wassalaam

I love the smell of onions. It is so seldom I can find real onions in Texas. The darn sweet onions are the most popular and everybody tries to raise the most mild and sweetest onions. Last time I sopped at a roadside produce stand the guy selling the stuff had the nerve to say that his onions are so mild you can eat them like apples and they they won't even make a baby cry. I told him that if I want an apple I'd buy apples and I want onions that make the neighbors within ten miles cry when I slice them. An onion is supposed to smell like an onion. If it ain't strong enough to make you cry, it ain't worth slicing. Just my personal opinion.

[umm-sulaim]

I love the smell of onions. It is so seldom I can find real onions in Texas. The darn sweet onions are the most popular and everybody tries to raise the most mild and sweetest onions. Last time I sopped at a roadside produce stand the guy selling the stuff had the nerve to say that his onions are so mild you can eat them like apples and they they won't even make a baby cry. I told him that if I want an apple I'd buy apples and I want onions that make the neighbors within ten miles cry when I slice them. An onion is supposed to smell like an onion. If it ain't strong enough to make you cry, it ain't worth slicing. Just my personal opinion.

lolz i totally agree ;D Besides, they have more flavour...

The massive spanish onions are really nice, when you cut them you can really feel the zing up your nose and yup you cry rivers ;D
If anyone has rheumatism in the chest onions are really good.

wassalaam

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[Fishman]

:sl:
One reason why chopping onions makes people cry:
"Poor little onions, I just can't bare to chop you up! :cry: "
:w:

[amirah_87]

As Salaamu ALaykum,

Interesting Post sis!!

A dish without onions, isn't a dish at all. it's worth the teary eyes and the runny nose! :D

If you really can't stand the tears, the simplest solution might be to wear goggles.

Ive tried that, but it does'nt work!
I've tried every trick in the book, but it does'nt seem to work with me! :exhausted
I now have to resort to cuttin them up with my eyes shut!

If anyone has rheumatism in the chest onions are really good.

SubhanAllah, those were the days! Eating Onions like apples just to feel better! Walahmdulillaah! ;D

they do wonders though, i remember eating raw onions for severals days cause i had this real bad flu (for like 2 weeks), normal medicine didnt seem to work! so a sister told me how onions are a good and all!
she told me to eat them raw! :eek: they're very veryy hot!!:phew i had a jug of water on standby everytime.:exhausted
but Alhamdulillaah my flu was gone within a few days! :)

[Mawaddah]

Onions raw!! :eek: I dont really like them because they make the breath so unpleasant :(

But I really really dislike cooking with these white onions, or 'fake' onions as I like to call them. They aren't onions at all! And they just seem full of water....

I guess that's why I dont cry when I peel them lol

[umm-sulaim]

lolz i like raw onions with my salad sometimes. Just brush ur teeth after innit maw, or use mint chewing gum! ;D

wassalaam

[Re.TiReD]

Why do onions make you cry?
As any chef knows, cooking an onion produces a very strong aroma that most people enjoy. But cutting up an onion stings your eyes and makes you tear up uncontrollably. If you love to include onions in your dishes, you're probably frustrated by this all the time. So just what is it in onions that make them such an ordeal to prepare? When you slice through an onion, you break open a number of onion cells. Some of these cells have enzymes inside of them, and when they are sliced open, the enzymes escape. The enzymes then decompose some of the other substances that have escaped from sliced cells. Some of these substances, amino acid sulfoxides, form sulfenic acids, which then quickly rearrange themselves into a volatile gas.
The gas reaches your eyes and reacts with the water that keeps them moist. This changes the chemical's form again, producing, among other things, a mild sulfuric acid, which irritates the eyes. The nerve endings in your eyes are very sensitive and so they pick up on this irritation (this is why our eyes sting when we slice onions). The brain reacts by telling your tear ducts to produce more water, to dilute the irritating acid so the eyes are protected. Your other reaction is probably to rub your eyes, but this will actually make the irritation a lot worse, of course, if you have onion juices all over your hands.
Oddly enough, this volatile compound is also responsible for a lot of the great taste in onions, as well as the pleasant aroma when you cook the vegetable. You'll also get sulfenic acids by cutting up garlic, chives and leeks, among other vegetables, but they don't form the same irritating gas, just a strong smell.
There are all kinds of remedies for dealing with this irritating phenomenon, some more effective than others. As a general rule, move your head as far away from the onion as you can, so the gas will mostly disperse before it reaches your eyes. If you really can't stand the tears, the simplest solution might be to wear goggles. This measure is very effective, but it may seem a bit extreme to those around you, and if your kitchen is steamy, you might not be able to see what you're doing (never a good idea when you're using a knife).
Peeling the onion and then chilling it in the refrigerator before you slice it will minimize the release of gas somewhat, because the change in temperature alters the compounds in the onion. Cooking an onion before you slice it will work also, for the same reason. Another easy solution is to cut the onion under water or run the tap over it as you slice.
Some people say if you hold a lemon, piece of bread or a sugar cube in your mouth, the food will absorb the gas before it reaches your eyes. Breathing with your mouth, instead of your nose, might also help because as you inhale, you suck the gas in and as you exhale, you blow it away. This keeps a lot of the gas from ever reaching your eyes.:statisfie

rofl!! good info....:thumbs_up onions do make me cry...which is something coz nothing else ever does!! hehe :giggling: oh and one more amazing fact.....mints make me sneeze! :exhausted hehe :w:

[Fishman]

:sl:
Soy sauce and Daddies Favourite sauce make me cough. But I still eat them!
:w:

[Re.TiReD]

lol nah I can do without mint...but I been cuttin alotta onions lately, coulda watered a garden with the tears! hehe btw they're not really tears are they? coz you're not upset or anythin..it's just salty water from the eyes innit. oh an i heard it's gud for ya coz it cleanses your eyes (crying and eyes watering that is) :)

[Yanal]

:sl:
Something that can stop you from crying while cutting onions is chewing gum.

[Yanal]

My mother cooks everyday and every secound day with onions and I have tried and it works Sr.

[Leyla73]

Chewing gum doesn't work with me .. lol

[Mujahidah4Allah]

:sl:

just reading about the reaction was making my eyes sting ... shukran for the info... ima try chewing gum, keeping the onions in the fridge works but it stinks out everything else...e.g. cheesecake...

wa/salam

[syilla]

:salamext:

i don't cry when cutting onions... :D

[Woodrow]

:salamext:

i don't cry when cutting onions... :D

Neither do I. I eat a lot of onions, I suspect the more onions a person eats the less sensitive they become to them.

[idk]

take out the middle part of the onion n u wont cry! tried and tested by moi (:

[doorster]

....

[Yanal]

Is it true that eating onions improve your eyesight?

[doorster]

....

[Woodrow]

Is it true that eating onions improve your eyesight?

I never heard that. However every vegetable in the Alliaceae family which includes onions, garlic, leeks, shallots, chives etc is very beneficial for your immune system and skin tone.

They are very helpful in preventing a wide range of diseases. A very much under-used vegetable.

[Yanal]

So lack of onion can cause eye disfunction?

[Woodrow]

So lack of onion can cause eye disfunction?

I can not find any connection between onions and eye dysfunction. However, onions do help prevent many diseases and cancers and are good for your skin.

[Yanal]

Will they help reduce acene?

[roohani.doctor]

Interesting post! I never knew all about that enzyme stuff...

take out the middle part of the onion n u wont cry! tried and tested by moi (:

True! The middle part is the worst --> just makes you cry like no tom.

[Woodrow]

Will they help reduce acene?

I would suspect it could as acne is primarily clogged pores and infected sebaceous glands. Onion and hard sweat producing work will clear clogged pores.

[H4RUN]

i was told as a kipper that if you whistle whilst being in the company of the chopping of onions, you wont get the teary eyed drama, but the thing was i never could whistle back then:p So if someone would like to experiment, feel free and let us know your findings:D

[Abu Sukkar]

I'm so hard i make onions cry.


On a side note if you ever paint a room and want to get rid of paint smell then chop onion in 2 and leave in room.

Laugh now and when I'm proved right you can pos rep me and apologize.

[Ansariyah]

:sl:
Something that can stop you from crying while cutting onions is chewing gum.

Or wearing sun glasses according to my bro lol

[SirZubair]

Get an onion chopping machine..

[syilla]

I've heard that onions can make the armpits smelly :ooh: