Onions, Garlic, etc.

Oh Miss Casey ! Hmmm, I know what you mean and I sympathise. Someone I used to know ate humungous amounts of garlic and it really really came through , in a not too good a way .
Try drinking green juices or eating green foods - like paisley , celery ,salads , chlorophyll supplements . Sweating will get it out too- so ....working out, a steam room.
I refuse to eat onion or garlic !

Mimi is right and at least one of her suggestions I tried out in person: chewing parsley

I could have onions and garlic for breakfast. My hands smell worse than anything after..idk..maybe drink lemon water? Idk, no idea really, sorry!

Parsley will counter the effects with the breath but not sweat...

quite frankly I fail to see what the problem is, I would expect any lady that smells of onion and garlic to be delicious...

I love onions and garlic, and use them freely in my cooking! I only get onion/garlic breath if I eat it raw -- and I don't seem to sweat it, thank goodness.

I read in Cook's Illustrated that fewer of the sulphur compounds are released if you slice the onion lengthwise instead of across (i.e. make strips, not rings).

You could try a combination of cutting lengthwise and using them only in cooked form and see if that reduces the effect.

To get onion or garlic smell off your hands, rub them over anything made of stainless steel. It works.

Not a problem for me - I hate garlic.
I do occasionally barbcue sliced onions, but they're cooked for a long time in lots of salted butter, and what's left doesn't seem to give me any ill effects.
Cheers,
Renato

Days? luckily not. But a few hours afterwards yes.

As 30roses was saying, the sulphurous compounds are produced when the clove of garlic is cut, smashed etc. Things are much milder if you keep the clove whole. So when I prepare a soffritto or the like I always keep the clove whole, and fry it at low temperature. But in general, I don't use it. Nor do I use much onion, I prefer shallots, though they still produce smells.

cacio

I don't think parsley or chlorophyll drops or any herbs actually help much. Mimi is probably right because the smell is caused by the stinky sulfur based compounds that are metabolized throughout the body, so it seems likely that only raising your metabolism will 'push' the compounds out of your system a little faster. The odor-free garlic pills have an enteric coating so that the thing dissolves in your intestines not your stomach, and the stinkifiers are supposed to be less noticeable. If anyone does come up with a means to neutralize the garlic/onion smell in the body, they should patent it!

I use thin food prep gloves when I deal with onions or garlic, too!

Edit-- Forgot to add:

+1 on SS getting rid of the smell. I found soap shaped SS "bar" that I keep by the sink, but it doesn't make contact around the nail or subungual areas and that bothers me, hence the gloves.

Also, the cutting and use of whole garlic makes sense, as the cuts or crushing initiates the enzyme activity that makes the stinkiness. Whole onions and garlic cloves have little smell due to this. Cooking and digestion will still cause the enzyme activity, but probably not as much if whole (???)

Ah, didn't this technique exactly as described, I put my hand under running cold water while touching the blade of a (ta-dah!) stainless steel knife. Works wonders within seconds.

I love garlic and onions - I just CANNOT imagine giving them up completely.

The key is to get significant others and anyone you hang out with to eat the same stuff as you. That way, everyone stops smelling each other.

Also, to a large degree, it depends on how well-cooked things are, especially in the case of garlic. Roasted garlic you ca use a lot of and not get a severe "garlic breath", but one clove of the raw stuff in a dish and dragon-breath ahoy.

Do away with garlic? Perish the thought! Part and parcel of my being.

Apart from the smell and the odor after , I don't eat onions and garlic because of my yoga background. These foods are considered rajasic and tamasic in Ayurveda. That's just the way I choose to live.
I do better without them .
Each to their own though! I do understand the culinary appeal of onions and garlic and cook them in foods for my family but not for me.

Garlic does not agree with me at all anymore, especially raw. I love the smell of it cooking in butter or oil, though (drool). I can never seem to find really fresh garlic anymore so I've given it up. I eat onions, but I sautee them, I don't like them raw, and I especially like them very soft and caramelized. It seems that the more cooked they are the less trouble they give. And I like the sweet Vidalia onions because they seem milder than others, which irritate my eyes and make me cry buckets when I cut them. Funny, I do slice them into strips, not rings, as 30 Roses notes. I don't think I smell oniony, and DH has never said anything but then he usually eats the same thing. I would say cooked onions and garlic are less stinky-making than raw.

I Love them and eat them in moderation.....I am one that sweats a bunch.....So moderation is my answer.....I also wonder if drinking alot of water would help.....Gary

I avoid these two spices in particular like the plague, I must be part vampire? But I have a friend and he swears by copious amounts of Jack Daniels and Wrigley's Spearmint Gum!

I agree with Mimi's suggestion of parsley and in particular celery for you hands if plastic gloves are awkward you could simply use Orange Gojo in the auto department of Wallymart that stuff will take the hair off Superman's chest! AND leave you with a better version of Terre d'Hermes.

Out of curiosity - do you use asafoetida as a replacement for onions and garlic in your food, as some Indians do?

Suga - nope . I just do without - I don't crave onion or garlic and I don't season anything I eat either.
Some of the most delicious food I've ever had *in my life* - no kidding - was cooked by an Ayurvedic Dr. at a retreat I was at. I never tasted anything like before or again. It was simply purity. ( Shame I'm not ! *LOL* )

My 'old-world' European upbringing taught me not to worry... and I don't I have to say I don't seem to sweat it either. A good reason is that I eat very little meat. I eat both a lot and would not want to miss them.

I've always eaten garlic and onion and don't find myself sweating them either - must be something in the genes I guess.

We eat garlic and onions in various formats everyday. We don't sweat it.
Has to be something in our diets.
Plus they're so good for your health.


Love this statement!



Agreed. Maybe not when we're going out for dinner but definitely after she's cooked something for us.

Thanks Miss Casey ! I know I come across as a bit of a health freak etc but honestly, I am not. I have my food demons chasing my a** every single day . *LOL* I don't like to 'preach' ,convert ...and respect everyone else's choices of food.
One tamasic food I LOVE and cannot give up ( tried many times... ) is mushrooms- I love them raw and cooked. The yogis don't eat this because it's grown without sunlight, in the dark.

Yes you can eat spices with yoga- there are lots you can eat including black pepper ( I don't use it really out of habit now... ) ,coriander, cumin, tumeric etc.

Nothing wrong with a woman that smells like a Döner Kebab. I wouldn't worry! Just eat some gum.

Interesting reading!


It's funny, I'm on the opposite end of this spectrum - I've tried so many times to like mushrooms, figuring that it was just a childish aversion that I should get over, but never could. I went through a phase where I made all kinds - button, portabello, oyster, shitake, chanterelles - and though some weren't that awful to eat ( shitake tasted okay; oyster mushrooms had an alright texture ), my stomach would always complain loudly after and I'd feel sick for hours. It wasn't a real allergy per se, but I think my distaste for them is my body's way of saying "This food is not for you."

After that, I left the earth's scary little tumors alone.

*LOL* scary little tumors ! That's funny Suga. Yes, sometimes our bodies just tell us- " you stay away from that ! "
I love all kinds of mushrooms and in particular ...portobello mushrooms.

Since you didn't like my comical response; here is my librarian response:

Try eating a lot of green, leafy vegetables. Parsley is great. Celery could benefit. Greens like collard or turnip or mustard or spinach or alfalfa sprouts, etc. can go a long ways towards handling the odor. Also, you may want to try some fruits like lemon or lime. Eat some of those with the rind to help rinse out the system. Oatmeal or oats could help somewhat. Raw potato may be of benefit. [Edit: certain greens mentioned above can possibly help alleviate symptoms of odoriferous garlic discharge but at a cost of yet another unpleasant gastrointestinal discharge. Drinking water and working up a sweat will only intensify the garlic discharge however it will probably help to run it's course more quickly! ] End of Edit.

I should mention that the probiotics of fresh vegetables alone can help a person. In other words, when eating fresh greens, you can obtain beneficial microbes in a way that is similar to yogurt's beneficial microbes.

Working up a sweat shortly after eating garlic can help expedite it through your system. [Edit: Drinking a glass of Milk was also suggested in another topic from another website however, if you were lactose intolerant this wouldn't be a viable option.] End of Edit.

Different people have different body types and eating habits and systems, so you will want to experiment with what works well for you.

source: http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/13762

Of course I'd go with Junior's suggestion of Jack in the Black/Wrigley's but then again, I keep a good safe distance from Junior just on principle! Hope this adds to your list of trials!

Eat all the onion and garlic you want on Monday. Spend the next six days adrift, alone, in a skiff.

Seriously though, I have no problem and have never had a bad word about aftersmells post garlic or onion eating. Thank the gods! I love them both and use them liberally in cooking many of my meals.

After eating in all those Marine Corps mess halls I suspect you have become immune to the scent of sweat and garlic kbe and folks are too polite to say anything! Me, I'm not so cultured as to mention to a fella when he reeks. Skiff or no skiff. ; o )