So, I cook massive amounts of food every 3 mos....

[LisaKinVA]

that requires me to cut say 20-30 onions for all of the various recipes. I posted on FB that the only thing I loathe more than handling raw fish was handling all of the onions when we do our quarterly cooking... and that my kitchen looks like a scene from Julie & Julia when I do...

 

A well meaning cousin IL (dh cousin) responded by posting a video on "how to cut onions," thinking that my technique needed a bit of help, as she didn't experience the rivers of tears I mentioned. I couldn't help but chuckle.

 

As if using the proper technique on a mountain of onions would make the fumes more tolerable. :lol:

[momofkhm]

I keep my onions in the fridge and I never cry anymore. Now I never cut "mountains of onions", but even when I cut 2 or 3, I'm fine. My kids laugh at others who cry when you cut onions because they have never experienced the crying factor. It's worth a try!

 

I have heard that if you cut a certain end first, it doesn't release the fumes, but I've never tried it.

[chiguirre]

Frozen onions are your friend. Yes, they cost more, but no more tears.

[Julie in CA]

Don't know about any no-tears prep method, but do you have a Smart & Final or other restaurant supply nearby? They sell big bags of pre-chopped onions, cheap!

[Cera]

Definitely refrigerate them beforehand. I refuse to cut onions unless they have been chilled, my eyes can't take it.

[Teachaheart]

I always have a burning candle on the counter when cutting onions and have no problems with tears. I know it works because if I forget to light the candle or light it after I've started cutting, the tears won't stop.

[Lara in Colo]

The best benefit to wearing contact lenses!!!!

 

Lara

 

(Like the candle idea!!)

[SonshineLearner]

I just wanna know what you cook 2-3 months at a time!!

:)

[Carol in Cal.]

If you peel and quarter the onions, you can chop them in a FP by pulsing it with the low blade in. Don't process it continuously or you will get mush though.

[LarlaB]

I just wanna know what you cook 2-3 months at a time!!

:)

 

Me too!!! :D

[LisaKinVA]

Don't know about any no-tears prep method, but do you have a Smart & Final or other restaurant supply nearby? They sell big bags of pre-chopped onions, cheap!

 

Closest Smart & Final is nearly 2000 miles away... restaurant supply is probably about an hour's drive. But, I love the idea :D

[OnTheBrink]

Don't know about any no-tears prep method, but do you have a Smart & Final or other restaurant supply nearby? They sell big bags of pre-chopped onions, cheap!

 

OH yeah! Those bags of onions have saved my sensitive eyes countless times. Most definitely worth seeking out.

[OnTheBrink]

Closest Smart & Final is nearly 2000 miles away... restaurant supply is probably about an hour's drive. But, I love the idea :D

 

How about a GFS (Gordon's Food Service)?

 

I've also seen frozen diced onions in the grocery store, just in smaller bags.

[LisaKinVA]

I just wanna know what you cook 2-3 months at a time!!

:)

 

I make our favorites, just multiples and freeze.

 

Spaghetti Sauce

Pizza Sauce

Chicken Chili

Chili Beans

Chili

Black Beans

Refried Beans

Enchilada Casserole

Chicken Enchiladas

Mac & Cheese

Meatballs

Plantation Supper

Stroganoff

Beef & Broccoli

Terriyaki Chicken

Italian Chicken (we grill and use on caesar salad)

Chicken Tenders

Vegetable Beef Stew

Vegetable Soup

Tomato Basil Soup

Taco Meat

Veggie Lasagna (making my own lasagna noodles, summer squash, and eggplant)

 

Essentially, I get everything to the "ready to cook" stage, and then it's either thaw and throw in the crock-pot, heat in the oven, or a flash in the pan -- add the side dishes (such as steamed veggies, or salad, bread, or tortillas), and dinner is ready fast.

 

It's like having a freezer filled with processed foods, but much, much healthier. We usually prep a minimum of 3 of any recipe, up to 6 or more, if it's a real favorite (refried beans, black beans, spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce), etc. Just a different version of "canning." So, I buy everything in bulk (although, when the tomatoes start coming in heavy, I'll "freeze sauce" as I go. So, I can get commercial sized cans, etc.

 

The best part is that I can custom size our portions (quart, gallon 2 gallon bags). So, even when kids start leaving the nest -- I can freeze just enough for who is regularly in the house, and not worry about having to make a "whole stew" or having enough spaghetti left over for dh and I to eat lunch and dinner for a week :D

 

It's really working out well for us. Makes it more difficult for me to not "feel" like cooking, when the work is pretty much already done -- and costs a lot less too.

 

For example, I have roughly 60 meals in the freezer for $300 in cost. Some of those meals are more complete than others (for example, I still need to make the biscuits and steamed veggies to go with the chicken tenders, but cooking the tenders just means pulling them out of the bag and putting them on the baking tray). Most of these meals yield at least one family dinner, and several lunches for dh -- and we always have "scavenger night" (leftovers).

 

We cut about $200 out of our previous food budget, increased the variety and quality of what we were eating, improved our family's overall health -- and kept my sanity more or less in check :D

[Dawn in OH]

The best benefit to wearing contact lenses!!!!

 

 

 

Both my mom and my husband, who wear contacts, can cut onions without tears. I on the other hand, can barely make it through one small onion without being blinded by tears.

 

Have you tried chopping them in a food processor?

 

Chopping an Onion in a Food Processor

 

Using a food processor to chop onions will not only save you time, but it can also cut down on the irritating, tear producing, vapors.

 

 

• Peel and quarter onion; place in bowl.

   

• Pulse 4 to 7 times until onion is finely chopped.

   

   

• Scrape bowl once during chopping.

   

  

  Scrape bowl once during chopping.

• Chop enough onion to measure 1/2 cup. Drain onions, if needed.

 

[teachermom2834]

I've tried all the suggestions. I even posted about it one day here. Some suggestions help a little but I never found anything that worked for me.

 

I started buying frozen pre chopped onions. I do everything else fresh/ from scratch but I love those frozen onions.

[Tiffnkids]

Have you tried onion goggles? :lol:

[mom2denj]

Do you freeze everything in ziplock bags or containers?

[rookie]

what is a plantation supper?

[Sputterduck]

What is plantation supper?

 

 

 

 

(jinx lol)

[Gooblink]

Have you tried onion goggles? :lol:

 

Brilliant! LOL

[LisaKinVA]

Do you freeze everything in ziplock bags or containers?

 

Ziplock Bags :D Except for the casseroles, in which we use aluminum pans, covered in aluminum foil (we reuse the pans), and then the pans go into 2 gallon freezer bags.

 

Plantation Supper is hamburger, corn, flat noodles, cream of mushroom soup, cream cheese, milk, onion, garlic, ground pepper. My grandma made it for my dad growing up... dad made it for us... I make it for kids...

[Paintedlady]

Have you tried onion goggles? :lol:

 

I've seen everything now. :smilielol5:

[abbeyej]

Goggles? Food processor?

[Mrs Mungo]

The best benefit to wearing contact lenses!!!!

 

 

 

I agree. Sometimes, if I've been around the house all day I'll go put in my contacts before making dinner for this exact reason!

[Spy Car]

I always have a burning candle on the counter when cutting onions and have no problems with tears. I know it works because if I forget to light the candle or light it after I've started cutting, the tears won't stop.

 

When I was in my 20s I read somewhere that clenching a lit wooden-match between ones teeth was a sure fire way to avoid onion-tears. I'm not sure how effective it was, but it sure made me look dangerous :D

 

Bill

[msjones]

Wear swimming goggles. They do the trick. Dorky, but maybe not as dorky as crying for an hour!

 

I am in awe of you and your three month bulk-cooking plan.

 

I have done up to 12 entrees in a day, but never 3 months worth! Your list looks great. It is truly amazing how little it can cost to feed a family when you do bulk cooking.

 

I have to ask: how long does it take to do it all? I'm guessing it's your entire weekend.

[Mabeline]

Have you tried onion goggles? :lol:

 

 

:iagree:I have supper sensitive eyes and I just keep an old pair of swimming goggles in the kitchen for chopping onions. Even when I use my food processor my eyes tear up and the goggles help a lot.

[sbgrace]

I'd do goggles.

 

I want to cook three months in advance too. Because of my son's (new and life threatening) allergies I have to make every single meal from scratch. The issue is I'm spending much of the average day cooking, baking, etc. and I hate it.

 

Are there certain things you've found don't freeze well?

 

How many hours does it take you (average) to do it and how much freezer space?

[LisaKinVA]

Wear swimming goggles. They do the trick. Dorky, but maybe not as dorky as crying for an hour!

 

I am in awe of you and your three month bulk-cooking plan.

 

I have done up to 12 entrees in a day, but never 3 months worth! Your list looks great. It is truly amazing how little it can cost to feed a family when you do bulk cooking.

 

I have to ask: how long does it take to do it all? I'm guessing it's your entire weekend.

 

I can get most of it done in 3 long days. Things like the Italian and Teriyaki chicken are very fast... enchiladas and meatballs take a bit longer (5 pounds of meatballs, OY!)

 

So far, the only thing I've had not do well was the first time I did beef stew... I didn't blanch the potatoes. YUCK. But, we won't be having stew until next fall, and it will most likely be Venison stew, so it will be a whole new "animal."

 

Biscuits and breads do better if baked and then frozen, but only do maybe 2 months at a time (I don't usually bother)

 

I've only been doing this for about 6 months. But so far, everything is working out pretty well. FWIW, when I freeze the mac & cheese, it's not cooked yet. I dump the hard noodles in with the milk, cheese, etc... and freeze that, so it's ready to go in the crock pot. Same with the beans, except they've been soaked overnight.

 

It takes a bit of planning, can't wing it -- but works out great in the end. I'm getting a bit better each time :D

[3and3]

I have to say I am impressed! Did you get the recipes from a book or did you learn as you went? It's sounds like a great idea.:)

 

I do school 3wks on 1 week off so if I took 2 days of that week and just cooked maybe I could have a month or two of frozen meals! I might have to give this a try;)

[LisaKinVA]

Most of the recipes I currently use are simply family favorites, some are new I've found on the internet (beef & broccoli, teriyaki chicken),others are adapted (turning "green" enchiladas into chicken enchiladas...)

 

My mom has this book, I think it's called, Putting Food By that gets into freezing, canning and dehydrating. As well as another book, Dinner's in the Freezer. The Dinner's in the Freezer book takes what I do to a whole different level. Pretty much everything is pre-cooked, and simply has to be reheated (microwaved). I'm fine with crock-pot or oven-ready.

 

My children are still relatively small, so food goes further. But we are approaching a day when I'll either need a 2nd freezer to cook once a quarter, or I'll have to increase our cooking days to once every other month (which still isn't too bad)

 

I'd start with the recipes you know your family likes and go from there. Get your calendar and plan the main meals out -- then start doing the calculations (how many #'s of ground beef, chicken, onions, etc.), set aside your shopping day (mine is usually the Wednesday), then plan out your prep (chopping onions...hehehe..... soaking beans, cooking chicken in crock-pot, making tortillas, making lasagna noodles, whatever it is), and your cooking plan (I start with the more difficult things and finish with the easy stuff -- because I'm really tired on the last day).

 

The only things I make more than four of are spaghetti sauce and pizza sauce. I have several Mexican meals we rotate, and I try to have at least one vegetarian dish a week, and alternate a 2nd chicken with a fish... I don't currently have any "make ahead fish" dishes. I usually buy the fish frozen, and do very little to it before cooking...

 

If you have a garden, and want to use your own veggies, they most likely need to be blanched first...but I haven't done anything like that yet.

 

It does take away a TON of stress during the week. And there is more that I would *like* to do, but haven't gotten there yet (waffles, french toast, breakfast burritos...things like that)

[min]

Lisa, I am in awe! Isn't it a wonderful feeling when dinner is in the freezer.

 

I do big batches of spag sauce and have to cut lots of onions, though not as many as you! I have a blender that is almost halfway to a food processor, and I do onions in that. I still have to peel and quarter them, but then I just toss them in and press "chop". I do them in batches, and as someone else said if you don't watch it you can get mush. Actually, sometimes mush isn't a problem, depends on what I'm doing.

 

Miranda

[msjones]

Another cookbook of this type is The Best Make-Ahead Recipe. It's by the Cooks Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen people, and everything I've fixed from that book has been a huge hit.

[buddhabelly]

Don't knock this one until you've tried it. Seriously, it works so well. Just put a small piece of onion on top of your head while you cut. I have no idea why it works, but it works like a charm. You will, however, invariably forget about it and greet your husband/children/dinner guests with a small piece of onion on your head. :lol:

 

Julie

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

that requires me to cut say 20-30 onions for all of the various recipes. I posted on FB that the only thing I loathe more than handling raw fish was handling all of the onions when we do our quarterly cooking... and that my kitchen looks like a scene from Julie & Julia when I do...

 

A well meaning cousin IL (dh cousin) responded by posting a video on "how to cut onions," thinking that my technique needed a bit of help, as she didn't experience the rivers of tears I mentioned. I couldn't help but chuckle.

 

As if using the proper technique on a mountain of onions would make the fumes more tolerable. :lol:

 

 

Put the onions in the freezer!!!!! For atleast 15 mins!!! No more tears!

[keptwoman]

I use Goggles, I also cut them right under the extractor hood, I find that sucks the fumes right up.

[mom2abcd]

It sounds like you have a wonderful plan going!!!

 

Some grocery stores sell frozen pre-cut onions. I've seen them at Super Walmart and another regular grocery store. That might be worth the extra money if you've tried everything else.