Depending on what kind of food you are preparing, the list of necessary ingredients changes. If the recipe contains onions, garlic, or fish, you should be prepared so that your hands will not smell unpleasant after processing them. We will tell you how to neutralize an annoying aroma so that household members do not shy away from you.
10 most effective ways to get rid of the smell of onions, fish, or garlic on your hands
1. Baking soda
Sometimes it seems that it is enough to have only soda and vinegar to solve all household problems quickly and easily in the kitchen, from cleaning the stove to doing laundry. So, you need to pour a teaspoon of baking soda into your palms and rub your palms with it for several minutes. Then wash your hands with soap and water, dry with a towel, and enjoy the absence of a fishy or onion smell. By the way, soda can cope with other aggressive aromas, particularly gasoline and bleach.
2. Toothpaste
We are accustomed to using toothpaste in two cases: brushing our teeth and tidying up white shoes. But in fact, it can become a participant in many household life hacks. In particular, toothpaste will neutralize the smell of onions, garlic or fish.
Apply it to your palms, rub well, leave for a minute, and then rinse with warm water. To consolidate the result, you can wash your hands with soap.
3. Lemon Juice
This method is especially effective in cases where the hands stink of fish. This is because citric acid can transform amines, which are the source of an unpleasant fishy smell, into ammonium salts, which do not irritate our receptors.
All you have to do is rub your hands with half a lemon after you’ve finished cooking. If there is no citrus in the refrigerator, rinse your hands with warm water with previously diluted citric acid.
4. Stainless steel
Stainless steel is not quite common but no less effective method to get rid of unpleasant odors. If your kitchen has a pot or pan made of this material, rub your hands on it. Another option is to hand wash a few cutlery made of stainless steel.
Also, in some stores, you can find a special odor neutralizer in the form of steel soap. True, no relevant studies have been conducted on the topic of its effectiveness; however, according to the reviews of many housewives, we can conclude that the soap works.
5. Coffee beans
Even if you don’t have a coffee grinder and you prefer to buy ready-made ground coffee, it still doesn’t hurt to store grains in the apartment. They help in no time to neutralize the unpleasant smell of garlic and onions coming from your hands. You have to rub a few grains and then wash your hands with soap. Also, a similar trick can be done with ground coffee, but the result will be less noticeable.
Please note: If you don’t like the smell of coffee, choose another way to neutralize the onion aroma. Otherwise, you will acquire another by getting rid of one receptor stimulus.
6. Coldwater
If you didn’t like any of the above methods, or if you didn’t have, for example, at hand, use the help of ordinary cold water. Be prepared that it will most likely not eliminate the smell completely but make it less intense.
7. Parsley
Probably, many of you know that you can neutralize bad breath with parsley. Perhaps that is why this variety of greens becomes incredibly popular after eating onions or garlic dishes. So, parsley can eliminate the aroma on the hands. Take a twig, knead it, wipe your palms, and then rinse them with water. Instead of parsley, you can use other herbs with an intense aroma, such as dill or rosemary.
8. Olive oil
The best way to solve a problem is to avoid it. Vegetable oil will help prevent the appearance of an unbearable smell. Olive oil is best for this purpose, but you can take any other.
Lubricate your hands with oil before chopping onions, garlic, or cutting fish. The oil will create a kind of protective barrier on the palms that will protect against unpleasant odors. The main thing is not to overdo it with the amount; otherwise, the hands will become too greasy and slippery, and the knife may accidentally fall out of the hands.
9. Gloves
The most reliable way will not allow an unpleasant odor to penetrate and remain on the skin. So if you don’t want to waste time removing flavours, work with culinary gloves, and nothing will happen to your hands.
10. Salt
Even if you’re trying to cut down on salt in your meals, it’s still a must in your kitchen. Many even buy it just out of habit – and they do it right because you never know when it might come in handy. We suggest using salt to eliminate irritating odors.
Rub your palms and then rinse well with cold water – the smell of fish or onions will immediately disappear.
However, this method should not be used if the skin has cuts and cracks. If salt gets into an open wound, it will provoke a painful tingling.
