Close X
Tuesday, November 26, 2024
ADVT 
Interesting

Introducing the Sunion, an Onion That Doesn't Make You Cry When You Chop It

Darpan News Desk IANS, 26 Jan, 2018 12:27 PM
    If you've ever had to chop an onion, you probably know that it's one of the most annoying cooking experiences. It just fills your eyes with tears and, apart from wearing goggles, there's not too much you can do about it.
     
     
    Scientists and farmers have been working on a solution to this problem for decades, and they've apparently come up with a tearless onion.
     
     
    Called the "Sunion", this new vegetable is the result of a natural cross-breeding program that's been going on farms in Nevada and Washington since the 1980s, which should put consumers worried about genetically-modified produce at ease. 
     
     
    It's supposedly a sweet, mild-tasting onion that doesn't leave that strong, pungent aftertaste, but what really sets it apart from most other onion varieties is that it doesn't cause teary eyes when it's chopped.
     
     
    When you cut into a normal onion, it releases a volatile compound called lachrymatory-factor synthase, and when that hits your eyes, your body produces tears to reduce irritation. Now, the interesting thing about regular onions is that the amounts of lachrymatory-factor synthase increase the longer the vegetables are stored, so the older they, the more you cry.
     
     
     
     
    In Sunions, on the other hand, the levels of that annoying volatile compound drop the more time goes by, until it lo longer has any effect on your eyes when you cut it.
     
     
    That's what Sunion growers are claiming anyway, but reports from those lucky enough to have tried them seem to confirm these claims. The Huffington Post had three of its reporters chop some Sunions, and apparently, none of them shed a single tear. According to the Washington Post, they don't have the pungency of regular onions and are so sweet that you can eat them "like popcorn".
     
     
    So the good news is that tearless onions are now a real thing. The bad news is that they are currently only grown in Washington and Nevada, and even though they are sold nationwide, they are still in relatively short supply. The first Sunion batches hit the shelves of grocery stores in December, but we'll probably start seeing them in most grocery shops and supermarkets in the next few years, as more people learn about them.
     
     
    Interestingly, even though Sunions are being marketed as the world's first tearless onions, back in 2015, from Japanese company House Foods Group. They claimed to have also created the world's first "tear-free" onion, by disabling the compounds that the popular vegetable releases when chopped. However, they irradiated the onions to do it, which was bound to keep some consumers away.

    MORE Interesting ARTICLES

    Bombay Sapphire Gin Recalled Nationwide Over Wrong Alcohol Content

    Bombay Sapphire Gin Recalled Nationwide Over Wrong Alcohol Content
    TORONTO — The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is issuing a nationwide recall warning for 1.14-litre bottles of Bombay Sapphire London Dry Gin.

    Bombay Sapphire Gin Recalled Nationwide Over Wrong Alcohol Content

    Ontario Man Convicted Of Sexually Assaulting Daughter For Close To A Decade

    Ontario Man Convicted Of Sexually Assaulting Daughter For Close To A Decade
      Man Who Argued In An Ontario Court That He Was Simply Being A "Touchy Feely" Father When He Regularly Pinned His Daughter Under Him — Face Down — And Ground His Genitals On Her Over Roughly A Decade Has Been Convicted Of Sexual Assault

    Ontario Man Convicted Of Sexually Assaulting Daughter For Close To A Decade

    Lingerie Vending Machine To Arrive In India Soon

    Lingerie vending machines at select prime locations, starting with a mall here, will be launched soon.

    Lingerie Vending Machine To Arrive In India Soon

    Father Stops Crying Baby In Seconds With A Single Sound 'OM'

    Father Stops Crying Baby In Seconds With A Single Sound 'OM'
    In his short clip, San Diego dad Daniel Eisenman does something so simple yet incredible that his video has collected over 34 million views since being shared on Facebook on April 22.

    Father Stops Crying Baby In Seconds With A Single Sound 'OM'

    In A Rare Case, Indian Court Grants Divorce After Hearing Wife's Plea On Video Chat

    In A Rare Case, Indian Court Grants Divorce After Hearing Wife's Plea On Video Chat
    The Husband Came Down To Pune From Singapore Whereas The Wife Appeared Via Video-conferencing.

    In A Rare Case, Indian Court Grants Divorce After Hearing Wife's Plea On Video Chat

    Beware! This Blue Whale Online Suicide Challenge Is Scaring Parents World Over

    Beware! This Blue Whale Online Suicide Challenge Is Scaring Parents World Over
    he most frightening bit is that once downloaded, the application-based game hacks the user's phone and cannot be deleted.

    Beware! This Blue Whale Online Suicide Challenge Is Scaring Parents World Over