Onions

Onions produce the chemical irritant known as syn-propanethial-S-oxide. This gas is also known as the Lachrymatory Factor (‘crying factor'). It stimulates the eyes' lachrymal glands so they release tears. This gas is instable and can react with water which results in, among others, sulphuric acid. When this happens in the eye, the eyes start to neutralize the acid by producing large amounts of water, and thus make us cry.

Cutting onions without tears:



Cold onions are less smelly yes.
Running under water does help.
Make sure the onions are very fresh. The older the onion the more it smells.
Breathe through your mouth not your nose while cutting onions.
If you get too teared up go stick your head in a fridge.... at work I walk into the freezer or cooler and breathe deep through your mouth to clear the onion stuff.
For those freezing onions a question. Do you blanch them first or do you just bag them and freeze them?
chill first the onions before cutting, and this reduces the amount of enzymes, its very effective..
when cutting onions you should use a sharp knife to slice onion because when the onion cells get crushed or broken the enzymes are then released and its the enzymes from the onion which make you cry.
Another good tip is to chill your onions in the frezzer before cutting them and this reduces the amount of enzymes that were released.

keep them in the refrigerator before you slice into them the juices won't be so juicy expelling the fumes that irritate your eyes, also: use very sharp knife, slice in half and run under cold water to get rid of the juices. If all else fails then put clear goggles over your eyes to keep the fumes away.

Ball up a piece of white bread and impale it on the tip of the knife to absorb the fumes.
Chewing gum while you chop onions may also help.
Eat a bit of lemon and your eyes will not tear even if you work with hundreds of onions.

Eye irritation can also be avoided by having a fan blow the gas away from the eyes as the onion is being cut.