Garlic---Wonderful Seasoning

Garlic is one of those useful and versatile ingredients that you either love or hate. Most cooking relies on the fragrance from this basic spice, so it is nearly impossible to avoid if you do any amount of cooking at all.

Well, after chopping garlic, you may found out that you have a strong garlic smell on your hands.

Using water? Lemon? Salt? Having try out with many ways but still cannot get rid of the smell efficiently? Very annoying right? No worries, we have the most useful tip on how to shake the smell! :)

The method that I want to tell you now is the most convenience and the best way to remove the garlic odour! It's pretty simple-- rubbing our hands on any iron (steel) after washed with cold water.

Does it sound ridiculous or crazy? Probably you would think that I'm talking nonsense, but before that let me show you one video which demonstrated by Chef Jason Hill.

What is the chemistry behind them?

Garlic

Iron

VS

A chemical named alliin is stored in the garlic tissue. When the garlic cloves being damaged or crushed, an enzyme breaks down alliin into allicin (the smell of fresh garlic) and diallyl disulfide(DADS).

After a relatively short while (30 minutes to 1hour), most of the allicin converts to diallyl disulfide (DADS). Allicin can be use defensively by having anti-insect and antimicrobial properties.

Allicin and DADS have a strong odour like many sulphur containing chemical compounds (i.e skunk urine). Both chemicals also are chemical cousins of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and have particular affinities to iron. Allicin and DADS transport well in iron rich blood because of this affinity. Their perfume is expel in the breath (i.e bad breath), as the blood reaches the lungs. 

Due to this strong iron affinity, we can rub our smelly hands on iron objects (i.e faucet). 

It will bring away these smelly compounds which prefer sticking to iron (steel).

Apparently, it is known amongst old chefs that chopping large amounts of garlic able to dull a knife (probably because of this chemical iron affinity).

So,in order to get rid of the smells of your hands after peeling or chopping garlic, just simply wash your hands and then rub your clean hands on a chrome faucet or the sink right in front of you!

Try it and its really work like magic!!

You hand smell back to normal! *cheers* : D