@arieltf When I was a kid I had a toy pair of night vision goggles. They weren’t real, they simply had lenses to tint your vision green and leds on the side. Here’s a picture ( https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41E8PrimJHL.SL500_AC_SS350.jpg ) They were bulky and less useful than just a regular flashlight. We did find it was incredibly helpful for cutting onions. In the end my mother elected to cut onions without them because crying is not worse than looking that ridiculous.
If I wear my contacts it helps a LOT also chewing gum seems to help. I have a pair of onion goggles that I will use if I have to cut a lot of onions but for the most part it’s unnecessary
Onion goggles. Works for me 100%. I’m coming out of months (years?)-long forum lurking to post about onion goggles…that’s how much i love onion goggles. I have these:
RSVP International (TEAR-BK) Black Onion Goggles, 6" | Safely Prepare Foods Without Tears | Remove Smoke, Steam, Vegetable Irritations | Fog-Free Lenses for Cooking, Skiing, Biking, & Dry Eye https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0014SQU1A/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_qwz6EbJNW0V9G
I don’t have a secret, they just don’t seem to bother me unless I’m chopping a huge amount of them. Even then, they just make my eyes sting a little. No biggie.
@katbyter I normally buy sweet onions. When the shit hit the fan I decided to buy a bag of yellow onions… What a mistake. The last onion I cut, I could barely finish cutting the thing. I had to leave the kitchen and go to the bathroom to wash my hands and rinse my eyes out. I was in excruciating pain.
Contact lenses or, if you’re gifted with perfect sight, rub both sides of the knife across a lemon every half onion or onion, depending on the size of the onion.
Sharp, and I mean SHARP knife and a fresh onion. Dull knives will damage more cells releasing more sulfur compounds, old onions will have more of the sulfur compounds that make your eyes water
-Cut them in a baby incubator (remove baby first),
or a sand-blasting cabinet (make sure it’s off).
-Wear a full-face respirator.
-Buy plastic onions.
-Buy a trick coin and “flip for it”, so your spouse always gets the honors.
Seriously though, as a free solution… I’ve heard freezing the onions for a bit helps.
If you have some money… Fog-free goggles are fantastic, but you have to remember where you put them.
Sharp knife and breath through your mouth. When I would have to cut 50 pound bags of onions in one go I would usually bite on a pen so I would breath through my mouth only.
@hchavers@jester747 Oddly enough, my user name doesn’t have anything to do with Carbon Dioxide. It’s actually my first and middle initials and I am the 2nd.
This may sound crazy, but keep your mouth closed when chopping onions. Every time I mention it to someone, they think I’m being sarcastic, but this time I’m not.
I bring the cutting board to the outside table and cut the onions there. Wind takes away the fumes, or blows it on your face if done wrong. Uhh, so maybe not a foolproof idea.
I’ve never had a problem. I was told as a kid that only certain types of onions cause the crying so I assumed I was always cutting the kind that didn’t.
Cut them “pole-to-pole”, not across the “equator”. The “cells” that contain the offending fumes run that direction, and if you cut parallel to them far less fumes will be released.
i voted no but actually, since i started using vidalia onions several years ago (or comparable large, sweet, flattened looking onion) they don’t bother me at all.
red onions which i do still buy for certain things are hit or miss, but in general having a good knife & decent knife skills will help (so you can chop faster before the tears start), and the fewer cells you break the less tears you’ll be prone to. so if you need slices, slice pole to pole (root to tip vs across the “equator”) and you’ll bust less cells. this also makes for a less pungent tasting onion. (read more about this by kenji lopez-alt on serious eats.)
the only thing that consistently gets me, and bad too, is shallots. like, to the point i usually have to stop and wash my hands and rinse my face because it burns and i can’t see. it’s weird. (and annoying!)
Tried and true reason for not crying while cutting n onion, don’t touch your face with the onion. JK don’t touch your face with your hands. Works too. Apparently same with covid sigh don’t touch your face, and seems for 63 years that is all i have done.
Wear swim goggles!
@arieltf Ski masks work as well…
@arieltf When I was a kid I had a toy pair of night vision goggles. They weren’t real, they simply had lenses to tint your vision green and leds on the side. Here’s a picture ( https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41E8PrimJHL.SL500_AC_SS350.jpg ) They were bulky and less useful than just a regular flashlight. We did find it was incredibly helpful for cutting onions. In the end my mother elected to cut onions without them because crying is not worse than looking that ridiculous.
If I wear my contacts it helps a LOT also chewing gum seems to help. I have a pair of onion goggles that I will use if I have to cut a lot of onions but for the most part it’s unnecessary
@MrMikenIkes Naturally, they’re made of onions.
Contact lenses
Onion goggles. Works for me 100%. I’m coming out of months (years?)-long forum lurking to post about onion goggles…that’s how much i love onion goggles. I have these:
RSVP International (TEAR-BK) Black Onion Goggles, 6" | Safely Prepare Foods Without Tears | Remove Smoke, Steam, Vegetable Irritations | Fog-Free Lenses for Cooking, Skiing, Biking, & Dry Eye https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0014SQU1A/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_qwz6EbJNW0V9G
A very sharp knife, fresh onions, and wet the blade. Re-wet occasionally if you are cutting a lot.
@Luko26
Really?
I don’t have a secret, they just don’t seem to bother me unless I’m chopping a huge amount of them. Even then, they just make my eyes sting a little. No biggie.
Sure – if someone else is doing the cutting.
Have someone else chop them
Knife has to be ULTRA sharp and you need a PERFECT knife technique or else it’s crybaby time.
I put my onion in the freezer for about 10-15 min before cutting it. Helps quite a but. And I use sweet onions.
@katbyter I normally buy sweet onions. When the shit hit the fan I decided to buy a bag of yellow onions… What a mistake. The last onion I cut, I could barely finish cutting the thing. I had to leave the kitchen and go to the bathroom to wash my hands and rinse my eyes out. I was in excruciating pain.
@katbyter @RiotDemon Yellow onions are for cooking. Sweet onions are for using raw.
Cut the onions in a bowl of water.
Cut them under water.
Food processor.
Contact lenses or, if you’re gifted with perfect sight, rub both sides of the knife across a lemon every half onion or onion, depending on the size of the onion.
Vidalias.
@PocketBrain Yes, this.
Just buy better onions.
Run the onion under water while peeling and then chop away with no tiers!
I found the secret. Don’t get emotionally attached.
Goggles usually work. Lacking those, cut in half and rinse in cold water. Majorly reduces the irritation.
Sharp, and I mean SHARP knife and a fresh onion. Dull knives will damage more cells releasing more sulfur compounds, old onions will have more of the sulfur compounds that make your eyes water
Just do it real fast
-Cut them in a baby incubator (remove baby first),
or a sand-blasting cabinet (make sure it’s off).
-Wear a full-face respirator.
-Buy plastic onions.
-Buy a trick coin and “flip for it”, so your spouse always gets the honors.
Seriously though, as a free solution… I’ve heard freezing the onions for a bit helps.
If you have some money… Fog-free goggles are fantastic, but you have to remember where you put them.
@jester747
… on your face, would be my first guess.
Contact lenses or putting them in the freezer for about 20 min before you cut them
I just think about my blood sucking cheating ex wife and the miserable existence of life she has now and it makes crying impossible
@buzzerbaby You okay there, bud?
After gas training in the army, in the 80s, onions never really effected me again.
I LOVE Gina Davis
@BobsWorld Chefs do that.
Sharp knife and breath through your mouth. When I would have to cut 50 pound bags of onions in one go I would usually bite on a pen so I would breath through my mouth only.
Hold a slice of toast (or just use a slice of bread) in your mouth while chopping the onions.
I gouged my eyes out long ago. No problem since.
YES IM A CHEF. CHEW BUBBLEGUM AND YOU WONT CRY. ITS SCIENCE
@viktore I’ve never heard of this and now I want to cut onions just to try it.
They don’t get to me and I have no idea why that is.
Long ago I was told to start cutting from the opposite end to the “root” end leaving the roots intact. Haven’t shed a tear since.
Refrigerate the onions to stop the gas from being released.
@hchavers Note: This doesn’t keep people from releasing gas.
@hchavers @TheCO2
Username checks out.
@hchavers @jester747 Oddly enough, my user name doesn’t have anything to do with Carbon Dioxide. It’s actually my first and middle initials and I am the 2nd.
This may sound crazy, but keep your mouth closed when chopping onions. Every time I mention it to someone, they think I’m being sarcastic, but this time I’m not.
Onions are disgusting! Therefore I do not have any need to chop them!
@sicc574 heh heh, my secret is I have the scullery mate cut 'em.
@sicc574 if you actually cook them they are delicious and add great flavor to soups and sauces. No one eats them raw.
@DonberKon @sicc574 Sure we do. On hamburgers and hot dogs. In potato salad and tuna and egg salad, salsa.
@pooflady @sicc574 fair point. What I meant was that nobody eats raw onions on their own.
@DonberKon @sicc574 Actually, my sister does but what can I say.
I bring the cutting board to the outside table and cut the onions there. Wind takes away the fumes, or blows it on your face if done wrong. Uhh, so maybe not a foolproof idea.
@KMakato
Get rekt @f00l
Easy! Just cut the onions with your eyes closed. Why has nobody else mentioned this super useful lifehack already?
@InnocuousFarmer
Bite on a Match Stick or Chop Stick while chopping. But who doesn’t need a good cry every now and again? Let it out…
I’ve never had a problem. I was told as a kid that only certain types of onions cause the crying so I assumed I was always cutting the kind that didn’t.
Cut them “pole-to-pole”, not across the “equator”. The “cells” that contain the offending fumes run that direction, and if you cut parallel to them far less fumes will be released.
Food chopper thingamajig device.
Depends on the onion.Usually I don’t even think about it, but every once in a while I’ll get a really intense onion and up wearing safety goggles.
i voted no but actually, since i started using vidalia onions several years ago (or comparable large, sweet, flattened looking onion) they don’t bother me at all.
red onions which i do still buy for certain things are hit or miss, but in general having a good knife & decent knife skills will help (so you can chop faster before the tears start), and the fewer cells you break the less tears you’ll be prone to. so if you need slices, slice pole to pole (root to tip vs across the “equator”) and you’ll bust less cells. this also makes for a less pungent tasting onion. (read more about this by kenji lopez-alt on serious eats.)
the only thing that consistently gets me, and bad too, is shallots. like, to the point i usually have to stop and wash my hands and rinse my face because it burns and i can’t see. it’s weird. (and annoying!)
/giphy onion goggles
@playtek LOL
Pinch a tennis ball tightly between your knees while you cut.
I don’t have a soul. I never cry
Tried and true reason for not crying while cutting n onion, don’t touch your face with the onion. JK don’t touch your face with your hands. Works too. Apparently same with covid sigh don’t touch your face, and seems for 63 years that is all i have done.