Do you remember the tip we gave you a little while ago for taking the "bite" out of red onions? Mr. Mexico himself, Rick Bayless, recently reminded us of this tip, and guess what — it works for all onions, not just red ones!
We were catching up on our DVR episodes of Mexico: One Plate At A Time (you record American Idol, we record Rick Bayless...) and Rick took the cameras into the kitchen at his Topolobampo restaurant.
His sous-chefs were busy prepping onions and he quickly stopped the camera operator to make sure he got a shot of their large buckets filled with water and drowning onions. (Onions can't swim without water wings — didn't you know?) He said that all the onions in his restaurants get a quick dip in the "pool" before being used in any dish: fresh or cooked. They don't need to soak long, just enough to get them washed off after being peeled and having their ends cut off. Not only does it eliminate tears, it also brings out their true flavor without being so harsh.
We've been using this trick in our own kitchen and with it being grilling season, we've gone through more onions in recent weeks than normal. We can officially share (once again) that this is a fantastic tip indeed.
Forget about holding your breath, lighting candles, standing on one leg, or wearing those silly goggles... just give onions a quick bath! Your tastebuds and your eyeballs will thank you!
• Related: How To Dice An Onion: The Video
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That's a great tip. I do something similar when making guacamole. Specifically, the first thing I do when making the recipe is dice then onions and put them in a small bowl, covered in cold tap water. Halfway through prep I put them in a strainer to give them time to drain. By the time they are added to the rest of the ingredients, most of the harshness is gone, but the sweetness and crispness - the main things they contribute to the guacamole - remain. This allows me to use more onion. ;)
My grandmother did this for years. Our family always found it weird that other people fret over onions so much, since we've always done my grandmother's trick and never had a problem. Way to go, Grams!
Thank you for such a wonderful tip. I'll give it a try very soon! How many onion tears have been shed...
I have heard about doing this but wondered if some of the flavor or juices leech into the water. Hmm...
http://thesweetest3.com/
I just wear my contact lenses when cutting onions - no tears!
Thanks for this tip - I echo the previous commenter that contacts are the best solution for onion tears. But I just got laser eye surgery, and while it is the best thing I have ever done for myself - the only downside is the tears I now get while cutting onions. I'm definitely going to try this trick out.
I wear contacts and have never noticed a difference. That would be great if it did though for me!
What about soaking onions in water reduces the production of sulfuric acid? Sorry Rick Bayless but that's a myth. If you chop onions under water (but who cuts onions in a bowl of water?) it will help and refrigerating them slows the release of the gases from the onion cells as you cut but soaking them in water doesn't do squat to stop you from producing onion tears.
I'm willing to try almost anything to keep from crying and whining while chopping onions! So far the very best method I've found is using a food processor. It would be nice to have something up my sleeve though for when I only need to chop, say half an onion.
Use a sharp knife. No tears.
Sharp knife, that's important, yes.
Another tip I've noticed works quite well is to breath through your mouth (not nose) when dicing your onions. It helps :)
I think it's the airflow from the mouth that keeps the onion fumes away from your eyes.
I do this and it works quite well. I'll peel and halve the onion, run it under warm water and then chop it.
Another good tip is to chop up everything else first - leave the onion until last.
The microwave is a great tool. If you want to add an onion, just get the skin off, cut off ends, pop it in microwave and cook. You then rough cut and put it in saute pan. No tears, no little bits, smooth sailing all around. If you are doing a mirepoix, do the carrot(s) for 1 or 2 minutes. Easy to chop.
10 seconds to garlic and peel pops off.
put the onion in the fridge and get it cold. Use a sharp knife and cut fast. NO TEARS