The secret, according to Jacques Pepin, for cutting up onions with no tears is a
very sharp knife. He says that a dull knife causes the release of acids which, in
turn, cause your eyes to tear. He says the procedure for tear-free onion cutting
is:
1. sharpen your knife just before you cut the onions, so that it is VERY sharp.
2. do not cut the ends off the onions, just peel the outer papery skin off the
individual onion and use the ends as "handles'
3. cut into the onion in slices, cutting almost all the way through the onion, turn
the onion and slice though again. then remove the ends and separate the
diced pieces of onion
You should end up with a nice dice and no tears. I have tried this technique
and then my old, "grab the knife and hack of the ends to make a nice base to
chop" technique, again and again. The results. Jacques wins. If I follow his
steps, I have no tears. Ever.
Sandra Kidd
skidd@xxxxxxxxxxx
------------------------------