FOOD / THIS HAPPENED TO ME

No-Cry Onions Still Make Me Cry

How O. Henry’s The Third Ingredient helped me overcome my dislike for onions

When I was a child, onions were my pet hate.

Cooked, I’d remove the offending vegetable from my plate. With the flawless vision of a seven-year-old, I sifted the onion from the stews, casseroles, noodles, even from Spanish omelets which we often had for breakfast.

The despised onion pieces would be placed on the edge of my plate, like fatally-wounded soldiers in a row. My aunts and grandmother would throw at me, with their eyes, sharp darts of disapproval from across the dining table.

They did not dare tell me off verbally.

My grandfather at the head of the table, the patriarch of the family, disallowed talking while eating. It’s how I got off from being scolded for my childish fussiness at mealtimes.

Raw, I suffered a lot of crying over the act of chopping and mincing onions. I was 10, still a child, but old enough to chop onions without cutting my fingers.

It happened during family gatherings when lots of dishes had to be cooked and extra kitchen help was needed.

I loved eating the various dishes during family feasts, so many mouth-watering choices. But I went into overdrive picking off the hated pieces of onions from my plate.

It’s perhaps why, until now, I continued to be a slow eater even if I no longer sift the onion pieces to put on the side of my plate.

The positive influence of O. Henry’s The Third Ingredient

Weirdly enough, I started to look at an onion in a different light after reading The Third Ingredient, an iconic short story by O. Henry.

I was still a child by then, just out of elementary school. The impressionable kid in me was convinced that onions were good for one’s health.

Didn’t the young man in the story say to Hetty Pepper that his mother told him to eat an onion to cure his cough? I thought, wow, onions must be magical!

From then on and into my adulthood and beyond, I’ve gone overboard in including onions in most of the dishes I cook, be it starter or entrée. In savory salads, mixing minced onion is a sure palate-pleaser.

With onions being regarded as “the diamond of the vegetable world”, my adolescent thought that this simple, available-everywhere bulb was magical wasn’t actually far from the truth.

Globally grown and cultivated, onions were a staple in human diet for 7,000 years. The nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and organic compounds in onions make them great sources of essential nutriments for our body.

Onions contain quercetin, a compound that is a potent natural anti-histamine and anti-inflammatory; onions have three times as much quercetin as kale and 10 times as much as broccoli.

With quercetin belonging to a class of plant pigments called flavonoids, research found that this most-studied flavonoid is a more powerful antioxidant than Vitamin E.

Onions actually contain more than 25 different flavonoids, making onions as one of the richest sources in our diet.

Other benefits derived from onions are as follows: *support heart health *support gut health *support bone health *may stop cancer cell growth *help in controlling diabetes *cure sore throats *and many more (you can check the references provided below)

Despite all these health benefits, onions still make me cry, especially the no-cry variety.

Who wouldn’t when you have to pay this amount for three no-tears onions?

Currently, a kilo of onions cost about £0.59 and £0.65 in the UK’s largest discount supermarkets. It is £0.39/k in this week’s special. Quality is superb, but crying while chopping is guaranteed.

I think I’d rather cry.

What about you?

References:

British Onions — All About Onions BBC Good Food — Top 5 health benefits of onions Onions New Zealand Inc — Health Benefits of Onions Organic Facts — 13 Impressive Benefits Of Onions Daily Record — Why eating red onions might just be the best thing for your health Times of India — 7 Reasons Why You Should Add Raw Onions To Your Daily Diet

There are ways to avoid tears when chopping onions. Check this piece by Olivia Marlene -

Outside the world of bursting bulbs of onions, here’s an interesting piece by Ruchi -

Helena Gomes shares her all-time favorite films, and one or two that I haven’t seen are now in my must-watch list.

And if you fancy a fantasy read, check this piece by David Perlmutter. Be blown away by the antics of his characters.

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