Explosive Onions

There i an interesting article in today's Times' Dining Section about onions and garlic.It;s not your typical coking piece.In fact, it;s more of a scientific view of them. This is a refreshing take on cooking articles, showing the food in a different light.

The piece, written by Harold McGee is in The Curious Cook., This is a section that runs occasionally, I guess, I never really follow it that much. However Mr McGee's writing caught my eye. He writs bout the chemical properties of the allium family. They're very similar in composition to gunpowder thanks to having a fair quantity of sulfur in their chemical make up.The sulfur is in small quantities that act as protection when the plant is damaged. That's why our eyes and noses run when we slice them. It's called the lachymatory factor and works well with other animals - not us. We 'll go through anything to add our beloved onions and garlics in our fave dishes.

Luckily the sulfur offensive is short lived. The heat of cooking almost eliminates this chemical leaving the onions and garlic almost sweet tasting. However some members of the allium family like chives are almost always used raw. MCGee recommends washing them and these to cut the sulfur odor.He also suggests cooking whole bulbs of garlic as opposed to individual cloves. This also cuts down on the garlic's intensity

Amazing what a simple onion or garlic bulb holds. Who knew they were like gunpowder waiting to go off. However unlike gunpowder, they result in some good things.