The trick is to place a damp paper towel next to the onion while cutting to help absorb some of the tear-inducing chemicals.
The damp paper towel trick.
According to a viral TikTok, placing a damp paper towel by your cutting board will draw the irritating gas away from your eyes. But we still shed a few tears when we tried this trick…
Chill or freeze onions to minimize the amount of gas released into the air. Light a match before you peel or slice the onion. The sulfur disables the compounds in onions that make your eyes water. Use a small manual or electric food chopper or food processor.
The verdict: Onion goggles work OK — some better than others. They may make you look a little funny, but they do protect your eyes from getting hit head on with a cloud of onion gas. At the very least, they do delay or reduce the tears that typically spring to your eyes when you chop an onion.
Method #1: Chewing Gum
The cooling effect of mint gum is supposed to counteract the burning sensation. Plus it forces you to breathe through your mouth, which will draw in the irritant before it hits your eyes.
Most of the onion's sulfoxides reside in its root -- the round part with hairs at the bottom of the onion. If you can leave the root untouched, you'll significantly reduce the amount of chemicals that make you cry when cutting. One simple method is to chop off the root end and then discard it when you start.
"All you have to do is get a damp paper towel, fold it up [and] keep it on your cutting board. That acid will be drawn to the wet paper towel and not your tear ducts." More specifically, onions create a chemical compound called syn-Propanethial-S-oxide when sliced.
To reduce tearing when cutting an onion, the National Onion Association recommends you "first chill the onions for 30 minutes. Then, cut off the top and peel the outer layers leaving the root end intact." It's the root end that has the highest concentration of the sulphuric compounds that cause your eyes to tear.
Want to use raw onions in a dish, but concerned they might be a bit too strong or pungent? Soak them in a bowl of cold water for a few minutes before using. Soaking the onions for 15 minutes or so in cold water will help to soften the their flavor, mellowing it out a bit.
Wipe your knife with lemon (or lime) juice
Before you cut your onion, lather up your knife with some fresh lemon juice. Since lemon juice is such a powerful smell, it will overpower that of the onion.
For added flavor, you can also soak the onions in lime juice, lemon juice, or vinegar. This method also works for other onions and bitter melon.
Steam from a kettle, hot running water or pan of water will draw away the sulfoxide (gas) from the onion keeping your eyes safe and tear-free.
Go to a quiet, private place (a bathroom stall is fine) and take some deep breaths to rid your body of any lingering stress. Gently dab excess tears off your face. Then splash a bit of cool water onto your cheeks and just below your lash line, and follow up with a cleansing cloth to wipe away any streaming mascara.
Crying easily can be a symptom of depression, anxiety, or a lot of stress in your life. Since HSPs feel so deeply and can experience sensory overload, we're more susceptible to strong feelings of depression or anxiety. We might feel alone in our sensitivity or isolate ourselves to reduce excess stimuli.
Onions are packed with antioxidants and antibacterial properties. Lemons are full on Vitamin C and antioxidants which aid in improving your immune system and help prevent diseases.
The first order of business is to know how to make onion juice at home. Peel the onions and chop them into tiny pieces. Blend these pieces together, add water for a seamless blend. Either strain the water or use the blended paste as it.
For centuries, onions have been used as a home remedy to treat coughs and colds. Drinking onion juice or making your own onion syrup can soothe irritated throats. Those same sulfuric compounds that prevent inflammation also help fight mucus and act as a natural expectorant.
stick a toothpick in your mouth while chopping onions prevents tears also.
The salt softens the onion's fibrous texture and mellows the sharpness of their flavor. There are other ways to tame raw onion, of course.
You can get rid of the strong taste by soaking sliced onions in ice water for 20 to 30 minutes or by sprinkling them with an acid such as vinegar. Onions soaked in ice water will get very crisp while those sprinkled with vinegar will soften a bit, but they will lose the strong taste and become sweeter.
The vinegar soak did rid the onions of much of their burn, but it was replaced by an equally strong sour taste, even after thorough rinsing. Milk was also very effective at removing the sulfur compounds, but it left the onions tasting washed-out.
Wet some paper towel and keep it on the cutting board. The acidity from onions gravitate towards water. So instead of hitting your tear ducts it'll seep towards the wet paper towel instead.” Someone else suggested: “Also tossing the onion in the freezer for a few minutes before cutting will help even more!”