Title: cutting-onions-msg
Subject: Techniques for cutting onions.
Author: Edited by Mark S. Harris
Last saved by: Mark S. Harris
Keywords: onion, cutting, chopping, cry, sulfur, feast, prep, meal

cutting-onions-msg – 1/4/04

Techniques for cutting onions.

NOTE: See also the files: onions-msg, garlic-msg, leeks-msg, onion-soups-msg, Run-a-Feast-art, headcooks-msg, cooks-clothng-msg, vegetables-msg, root-veg-msg.

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This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium.
These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org

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    Mark S. Harris                  AKA:  THLord Stefan li Rous
    mark.s.harris at motorola.com            stefan at florilegium.org
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Date: Wed, 3 Sep 2003 09:33:42 -0400
From: Jeff.Gedney at Dictaphone.com
Subject: RE: [Sca-cooks] peeling onions/inability to cut onions
To: Cooks within the SCA <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>

> Must try that sometime... while we're on the subject, actually - I've gotten
> to the place where I'm almost completely unable to cut onions because they
> make my eyes water so badly - and I've tried all the running water/glass of
> water on the counter/etc tricks anyone I know could tell me.  I'm getting
> desperate, because having to break out the Cuisinart just to make dinner is
> a bit... much.  Help? :-)

from much experience:

1) you need a VERY SHARP, UNSERRATED knife.
      the less you damage the individual cell walls the less the defensive
chemicals in the onion will mix with the air to make you cry.
      a dull knife crushes it's way through the onion,
      Serrated knives are almost as bad as a dull knife, they SAW through
the onion causing the same effect.

      A very sharp conventional knife will give you the least cry for your
onion dollar. If you cant sharpen your own knives for soem reason, buy one
you will use just for onions, and have it commercially sharpened ( look in
the yellow pages under cutlery ) keep that one set aside fir onions. use a
plastic or good wood board and do not "CHOP" but allow the knife to do the
cutting. Use a slicing action.

2) a cold onion is better than warm (do not allow your onions to freeze,
freezing disrupts cell walls and practically guarantees that your onion
will bleed cry juice all over).

3) work near a fan or open window. plenty of ventilation helps.
      getting a small battery powered fan to blow across the board helps
disperse the chemicals faster.

4) DONT TOUCH YOUR FACE OR EYES, even with the back of your hand, you 
are just bringing the juice on your fingers closer to your eyes!

5) If you have a LOT of onions to cut, you will find that if you just let
nature take it's course your eyes will accomodate roughly the same way 
they accustom to chlorinated pool water.
      but they will tear up again when you are no longer working with 
them, as they readjust the chemical balance.

Date: Wed, 03 Sep 2003 08:48:36 -0500
From: "Leah A. Montgomery" <mog_bane at hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] peeling onions
To: sca-cooks at ansteorra.org

> Can anyone tell me the best way to peel an onion? How much should be
> removed? Is there an easy way?

*snippage*

> Stefan

Here is my favorite way of cutting onions. I have worked in restaurants for
many years and that's where I learned it. Cut the top and the bottom off of
your onion. Cut the onion in half, this makes it ten times easier to peel.
It's perfectly fine to remove the first layer of "real" onion, usually it
makes it a quicker job, and the waste isn't that bad. Most people don't want
to mess with the extra time it takes to peel off only the husk, or brown
part, especially if they've got 20 or more pounds that they are cutting. Lay
down one half of the onion, wide cut side down. Cut it against the grain,
from cut end to cut end, as thin as you will want the final pieces to be.
Then cut with the grain as thin as you want the final pieces to be. For
strips, just cut with the grain. Easy and simple!

Leah A. Montgomery
SCA: Safia bint Wahib al Marakeshi called Samira
Head of Byat Al Viola Hirrar
Bryn Gwlad, Ansteorra (Austin, TX)

Date: Wed, 3 Sep 2003 10:29:05 -0500
From: "Mercedes/Stephanie" <steldr at cox.net>
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] peeling onions/inability to cut onions
To: "Cooks within the SCA" <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>

I've found that a lit candle near the cutting board can help.

Mercedes

Date: Wed, 03 Sep 2003 11:43:12 -0400
From: AEllin Olafs dotter <aellin at earthlink.net>
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] peeling onions
To: Cooks within the SCA <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>

Sue Clemenger wrote:
> I've never done anything with pearl onions, but maybe you could blanch
> them, briefly, using the same method one does for getting skins off
> tomatoes and peaches (i.e., a brief bath in boiling water, and then
> plunge into cold?)
> --maire

This is the way the canning books suggest you handle them for pickling.
I've done it, and it works pretty well. They do get slippery, though... 
;-)

This is also the way, Jadwiga, that what's his name did the garlic,
remember?  and it did indeed move faster. Not worth it unless you are
doing bulk, but for a lot, it does seem to speed things up.

AEllin

Date: Wed, 3 Sep 2003 11:57:37 -0400
From: "Jeanne" <jeanne at atasteofcreole.com>
Subject: RE: [Sca-cooks] peeling onions/inability to cut onions
To: "Cooks within the SCA" <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>

We've always major hacked them under running water or held the old sulfur
matches between our teeth or light a candle.  By an open breeze also 
works.

Candle is best, the flame sucks in the noxious gases so you don't get to
experience them fully!

Soffya

<the end>

Edited by Mark S. Harris	cutting-onions-msg	 of