Have you ever cooked a dish with onions, left the house, then came back and the house still smelled fishy? You may also still smell onions on your hands after hours, even days, even after washing your hands. Onions that you process while cooking can leave a strong, long-lasting odor on your hands and on your home. Fortunately, there are several methods you can follow to get the odor out of your hands and home.
Step
Method 1 of 2: Hand Cleaning
Step 1. Rub your hands on a stainless steel object
This step is one of the most commonly used home methods for getting that stubborn onion smell out of your hands. When you're done processing the onions, hold the stainless steel spoon. Rinse your hands with warm water while still rubbing your hands and fingers on the convex part of the spoon. The sulfur content in the spoon can lift and eradicate odors from the skin.
- You can use anything made of stainless steel. Knives and other cutlery are usually made of this material. You can also rub your hands on the surface of the sink or faucet as these are usually stainless steel objects.
- Some companies produce stainless steel in the form of soap that you can buy and stock in your kitchen.
Step 2. Rub salt on hands
Take a handful of coarse salt (or table salt). Wet hands slightly with warm water. After that, rub salt on all parts of the hands that smell like onions. Rinse hands with warm water. This method helps to remove the pungent odor from the skin.
- You can also add a little lemon or lime juice to the salt. This fruit juice helps reduce odors and leaves your hands smelling fresh like citrus fruits.
- This method has the additional function of being a natural exfoliating technique. In addition to making hands smell fresh, the skin will feel smoother.
Step 3. Clean your hands with baking soda
One of the most commonly used odor eliminators is baking soda. Baking soda can eliminate odors in your home, whether it's in your refrigerator or shoes. Your hands can also be cleaned using this material. Mix baking soda with a little water to form a paste. Apply a paste of baking soda to your hands and rub it where it smells the most. Rinse and dry hands afterwards.
Step 4. Wash your hands using ground coffee
Pour the ground coffee that has been brewed sufficiently into the palm of the hand. Wet your hands. After that, wash your hands with coffee, just like when you wash your hands with soap. Rinse and dry hands afterwards. In addition to reducing the smell of onions, your hands will smell like coffee.
Make sure you follow this method using ground coffee that has been brewed. Freshly ground coffee will not give the desired effect
Step 5. Rub the vinegar on your hands
Prepare some vinegar. Spread on the part of the skin that smells of onions. After that, rinse your hands with warm water (towards hot) and dry them. The acid content in vinegar can lift the odor on the hands.
Your hands will smell like vinegar afterwards. However, unlike onions, the vinegar smell will go away when you wash your hands again afterward with soap and water
Step 6. Apply dry mustard to your hands
Sprinkle dry mustard into your palms. Wet your hands and mix the water with the mustard until it forms a paste. After that, spread the paste all over your hands. Rinse and dry hands afterwards. The substances contained in mustard can lift the pungent smell of onions from the skin.
Make sure you use mustard in the right form or type. Do not use dried mustard lumps that are sold in bottles. All you need to use is dry mustard. Dried mustard is a yellow powder that is often used in various recipes. You can find it on the spice rack at most supermarkets
Step 7. Coat your finger with toothpaste min
Toothpaste usually contains baking soda and other odor-fighting ingredients. Just like when you get rid of bad breath caused by onions, toothpaste can also remove the smell of onions from your hands. Dispense a small amount of toothpaste into your palm (about the size of a pea). Rub on the hands that smell bad. After that, rinse and dry your hands.
- Make sure you use white toothpaste, and not gel toothpaste. Gel products do not contain the ingredients found in white toothpaste.
- With this method, your hands will also smell fresh mint.
Method 2 of 2: Get Rid of Garlic Smell from Home
Step 1. Boil the cinnamon
Take one or two cinnamon sticks and put them in a pot of water. Heat the water over high heat until it boils. Keep the mixture simmering for a while to allow the cinnamon aroma to diffuse into the air. Cinnamon can mask strong odors in the kitchen and home.
Make sure you keep an eye on the water level in the pot. The pot should hold enough water to prevent it from burning and causing a strong scorched smell in the kitchen
Step 2. Heat the baking soda in the slow cooker
Besides getting rid of odors from hands, baking soda can also reduce unpleasant odors in the air. Take a few tablespoons of baking soda and mix it with enough water in a slow cooker. Turn the slow cooker on to low heat and remove the lid. Heated baking soda can draw bad odors from the air.
In addition to eradicating odors, this method can also be used to freshen the air. Add a few drops of vanilla extract, a few teaspoons of your favorite spice (such as cinnamon or cloves), essential oil, or a lemon wedge to the baking soda and water mixture. Baking soda can still eliminate odors and the added ingredients will replace the pungent smell of onions with a fresh new scent
Step 3. Heat the lemon juice
This method makes your home smell as fresh as a citrus fruit. Cut a lemon and put it in a pot of water. Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat to medium-low heat while still simmering the mixture. The acid content in lemons will draw the pungent smell from the air and give it a fresh fragrance.
- You can also use oranges or limes. The acid content in both is the same and gives a similar effect.
- Make sure you keep an eye on the water level in the pot. Do not let the water and lemon mixture burn.
Step 4. Make or bake a dessert
One way to get rid of the smell of onions is to make or bake something that can replace the pungent smell of onions. Try making cookies or cakes. A dish with a sweet aroma can mask the smell of onions and replace it with the typical aroma of bread or cake. As a bonus, you can also enjoy a delicious dessert afterwards.
Step 5. Use vinegar and vanilla
Before processing or chopping onions, mix the vinegar with a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Place the mixture near a cutting board or work area while you chop the onions. The mixture can absorb the smell of onions and prevent the kitchen from smelling bad.
Move the vinegar and vanilla mixture near the stove if you want to cook the onions. Thus, the mixture can reduce the smell that comes from the cooked onions
Step 6. Light the candle
Apart from making the room smell nice, the candles that are lit also help reduce the pungent smell of cooking. Try lighting a candle in the kitchen to reduce the pungent smell of chopped and cooked onions. Use candles with a fresh scent, such as citrus or vanilla. The extracts used to create the aroma will reduce the pungent odor in the kitchen and home.
