There are many reasons why you might chop onions, as they are a vital ingredient in a number of dishes. The only drawback is the eye-watering fumes and the lingering smell.

You might think scrubbing your hands with soap and water will get the smell off your hands. Instead of scrubbing your hands, consider your kitchen sink.

The enzymes causing the onion smell can be deactivated by the ions in your stainless steel sink. Rubbing your hands on your clean sink might eliminate that onion smell.

Inside the onion, there's an enzyme known as syn-propanethial-S-oxide. Once the onion is cut, this enzyme is released, thus making you cry and getting that smell stuck to you.

You can use stainless steel to deactivate it. Wipe down your stainless steel sink, then rub your hands along the surface while rinsing them under cold water.

The layer of chromium oxide that protects your sink from corrosion contains ions that interact with the onion enzymes, neutralizing them.