日本研發“微笑”洋蔥，讓你切洋蔥時不再流淚

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Onions may be one of the healthiest, most flavorful vegetables on the face of the Earth, but they’re definitely no fun to chop. However, your days of getting teary-eyed in the kitchen may be coming to an end as Japanese company House Foods Group prepares to launch the world’s first tear-free onion to the market.

洋蔥也許是世界上最健康可口的蔬菜了，但是切洋蔥可不是什么好玩的活。然而，切洋蔥“催人淚下”的歷史終于要結束啦!因為日本House食品集團株式會社即將推出世界上首個“無淚洋蔥”。

Aptly named “Smile Ball”, because it puts a smile on your face rather than make you cry, this new type of onion is the result of two decades of research. In 2002, House Foods Group scientists published a paper in which they hypothesized that tear-inducing enzymes in onions could be weakened while retaining their full flavor and nutritional value. Their research actually won an Ig Nobel Prize – an award handed out to honor achievements organizers consider unintentionally funny – but last year the company announced that their theory had finally become reality. Although the announcement mentioned that House Foods Group had no intention of producing Smile Ball onions commercially anytime soon, it appears the wonder vegetables will hit Japanese stores this fall.

這種名叫“微笑洋蔥”的新洋蔥可謂名副其實，因為它不會讓你流淚，反而能令你微笑。研究者們花了二十多年才使其問世。2002年，House食品集團株式會社的科學家們發表了一篇文章，文章中提出一個假設，洋蔥中催淚酶的功效可以被減弱，但其原有的口感和營養價值能被保留。這項研究獲得了“搞笑諾貝爾獎”——這個獎是為了選出那些“無意之中達到搞笑效果”的研究。去年該食品集團宣布他們的理論已變成了現實。盡管當時該集團稱不會在短期內商業化生產“微笑洋蔥”，但是這種奇異洋蔥有望在今年秋季進入日本商店。

It has long been known that chopping onions induces tears due to a volatile gas released by onion cells when damaged by the knife. Chilling an onion reduces the movement of its atoms, resulting in less syn-propanethial-S-oxide – the tear-inducing lachrymatory agent – being released when cut, but that only reduces the number of tears you shed. Chopping the Smile Ball onion in any conditions is reportedly a tear-free experience.

人們很早以前就知道，切洋蔥時會熏到眼睛流淚，是因為被刀切到時洋蔥細胞會釋放出一種易揮發氣體。將洋蔥冷凍能減少洋蔥原子的運動，從而減少順式-丙硫醛-硫化物的釋放，這種氣體就是“催淚彈”——洋蔥被切時就會釋放。但是切冷凍洋蔥只能減少流淚，切“微笑洋蔥”，不管是冷凍還是常溫，都能給你帶來“無淚”體驗。

Last year, when it made its big announcement, House Foods Group revealed that it managed to suppress the production of syn-propanethial-S-oxide by bombarding onion bulbs with irradiating ions, which also made the vegetables less pungent. Full-grown Smile Ball onions release almost no tear-inducing compounds when chopped or eaten raw. Unlike regular onions, they are said to have a sweet taste reminiscent of apples or Asian nashi pears.

去年，House食品集團隆重宣布，他們用輻射離子照射洋蔥，已經成功抑制了順式-丙硫醛-硫化物的生成，還能減少洋蔥的刺鼻氣味。不管是在切洋蔥時還是生吃時，成熟的“微笑洋蔥”幾乎不會產生催淚成分。與普通洋蔥不同的是，它們據說還帶一點蘋果和亞洲沙梨的甜味。

About five tons of Smile Ball onions were sold in trial runs at Tokyo department stores and online shops this year, but come fall, they will be available at supermarkets nationwide, at a price of 450 yen ($4.30) for a pack of two. That’s twice as expensive as regular onions.

今年已有約五噸“微笑洋蔥”在東京百貨商店和網店試銷，等到秋季時將會進入日本各地超市，一包兩個的售價是450日元(合4.3美元)，比普通洋蔥貴了一倍的價錢。

The rate at which the trial batch of 5-6 tons of Smile Ball onions sold out signals that they will be a huge hit when they hit the market, but skeptics worry that they will have the same fate as apples, which many say have lost most of their original flavor after years of selective breeding.

這批五六噸的“微笑洋蔥”被搶購一空的速度，預示著它未來在市場的巨大成功，但是有懷疑論者擔心新型洋蔥會步蘋果的后塵——蘋果曾經經歷了數年的選擇性培育，以至于喪失了原有的風味。