It is the most natural reaction there is, but which is frankly very annoying. Besides, who has not tried all these diverse and varied tips that we seek as grandmother secrets to end the tears and all red eyes when we…. Cut an onion?
There is the match or bread slice in the mouth. There are also the cuffs that we pass under cold water before making the cut, or the onion to go to the freezer fifteen minutes before taking action. Otherwise, simply put a diving mask, as a number of humorous videos on social networks suggest, unless you pass the knife blade under a net of lemon juice …
The knife precisely, we would approach a start of the solution, according to a recent experience carried out by the Cornell University of Ithaca, in New York State, and revealed by the weekly magazine New Scientist.
The whole question is whether … Your knife is sharp? In other words, is it blurred? Because in this case, there is a good chance that the infantryman to grind causes you a serious crisis of tears. The reason is after all logical when we understand scientific experimentation. The conclusion of the study by the researcher Sunghwan Jung and his team: a knife that does not contrast well can generate up to 40 times more droplets than a sharp blade. Because the skin of the onion folds which increases the pressure inside.
The scientific team cut yellow onions with different blade thicknesses, but also at more or less rapid speeds. The operation was filmed using a high speed camera. And to better visualize the way the onions reacted to the maneuver, they were painted black in aerosol. Morality: there are fewer droplets when the blade is well sharpened. Also, when you decide very quickly, you multiply by four the quantity of these particles, compared to slow manipulation.
It must be understood that the presence of these droplets on the blades of the experience says everything about the natural reaction caused by the cutting of an onion. And therefore of their importance in this research. Clearly, they are irritating.
When a onion is peeling, this triggers the release of a gas that comes into contact with the tearful liquid of the eyes. The mixture gives rise to sulfuric acid. To better understand this consequence, you should know that the onions capture the sulfur contained in the soil, which then lodges in the cells of the condiment. The result is as immediate as it is unpleasant: we cry! It is boring when there are many to detail and the view is essential for the rest of the operations in the kitchen …
And if you do not have sufficiently sharp knives, do you know that science has (also) allowed to develop onions that are not crying? It is the Sunions brand that markets them. They are the result of more than 30 years of research carried out in the States of Nevada and Washington.