The other day, my boss commented on the odor of a sandwich that someone in the office had ordered from Jimmy John’s. He said that it smelled heavily of garlic and onions. Having never been able to smell, I often ask people to describe particular odors for me. And over the years, both garlic and onion are smells of which I’ve inquired; however, I don’t think the combination of the two scents has ever come up. So, I had to ask.
And like everyone else, he had a difficult time describing the scent in terms that I could understand. And so, having a vague understanding of what people typically describe to me, I asked if the two smells, garlic and onion, combine into a new smell, or if they keep their own unique fragrances. And he said that they basically fight for dominance; you smell one then smell the other, duking it out as if the two odors cannot co-exist. This intrigued me.
And so now I’m wondering if there are other common combinations of fragrances/foods that do the same thing. If you can think of any, leave me a comment below. Feel free to attempt to describe it if you like, and I’ll add it to my smell dictionary.
- Jun 20, 11:46 AM
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1 · Michelle Pendergrass · Jun 20, 12:01 PM
Interesting, as always.
I can only speak from my experience, of course. Phil and I consume garlic and onions in massive quantities and more often than not, we use them together.
Onion scent is pungent. It doesn’t sneak up on you, it’s there and it’s flamboyant. It also pokes and prods. Cutting onions always makes my eyes water, so there a chemical reaction in the air with an onion scent. Since onions are roots, they have an earthy quality with a bite. Much like a hot pepper, just milder. Peppers also have a certain sweetness to them that onions don’t. Well, except Vidalias, they are sort of sweet.
Garlic, I think, is more of an intruder. Where onion is brazen, garlic is fluent. Garlic is tangy and never sweet. Roasted garlic takes on that Starbucks quality we talked about earlier.
I think that garlic and onion are made to go together. Like coffee and cream. Separate, they’re very unique, but together, they mesh. They’re both very strong flavors and typically if a person does not like either, they will forgo the entire dish they’re prepared in because the flavors permeate everything they touch.
2 · Heather Ackmann · Jun 20, 12:22 PM
hmmm…so instead of mortal enemies, garlic and onion are more like partners in crime…interesting.
3 · Michelle Pendergrass · Jun 20, 12:34 PM
Yes.
Mortal enemies would be (for example) garlic and lavender.
Lavender had a very light, sweet scent. Calming. Not intrusive or invasive. Lavender makes me think of babies and fields of flowers on a spring day. Garlic would be the ogre in the tree who whips up a mean stew.
4 · Heather Ackmann · Jun 20, 12:41 PM
But in terms of one smell overpowering the other, wouldn’t lavender loose the fight? I’ve always pictured garlic as quite the bad ass.
5 · Michelle Pendergrass · Jun 20, 01:33 PM
Well. A lavender flower would would lose out to crushed garlic. However, lavender oil (concentrated) would probably win out over garlic.
Lavender seems to have levels of potency whereas (to me) a crushed clove of garlic and a hundred cloves of crushed garlic are the same.
There’s a city, Gilroy, CA—the garlic capital of the world. The whole city smells like garlic because they produce a LOT of it. But it doesn’t smell different than my kitchen when I’m cooking.
6 · Janet · Jun 20, 05:13 PM
I liked Michelle’s comment about how they really work together. It’s true! Garlic to me has a fuller smell, it’s pungent harshness is backed by a full-bodied nuttiness that gives it more umph. Onions have a sharp pungent smell that cuts quickly through the air. They are the broadsword and rapier of earthy pungent aroma. Garlic is a sumo wrestler and onion is the judo master. Both are very similar yet slightly different; both can make your eyes water. When cooked, their scent and taste become more mild and pleasant, thus transforming into mere wisps of the pungent bulbs they once were. Even though when uncooked they are pungent, I don’t know if I would say that they actually smell horrible. They are just a bit overpowering to the nose. Also, I think location makes a huge difference. Newly cut onion and garlic in the kitchen smells fresh and good (perhaps because it heralds the upcoming creation of a delicious dish?), but the scent of onion and garlic at work or on the subway is extremely offensive (possibly because it suggests poor hygiene or manners?). Describing the difference between these scents is a very interesting topic. Good luck!
7 · Janet · Jun 20, 05:34 PM
I was wondering if you considered researching synesthesia for possible clues into the world of smells. There is a history of artists, musicians, and writers with synesthesia who have created various works based on the mingling of a particular sense with other senses within the mind. Perhaps there are other representations of taste and smell out there for you to discover. Just a thought.
8 · Heather Ackmann · Jun 22, 06:26 PM
I just saw a special on the science channel about synesthesia. I had never heard of that until recently.
9 · Michelle Pendergrass · Jun 23, 02:22 PM
Wow. I actually have synesthesia. I’ve blogged about it.
For example, when I touch cotton balls, my back teeth hurt. Same goes with clay.
Crunching Styrofoam also makes my back teeth hurt.
If I see someone getting hurt (like on America’s Funniest Videos) I get hot, shooting pain in my lower back.
10 · Alan Weissenbacher · Aug 23, 01:59 PM
Here is another common odor battle – When you are sitting between two over-pefumed ladies in church – which one wins?
11 · Heather · Aug 25, 03:41 PM
Interesting Alan…wouldn’t that depend on the perfume each lady was wearing?
12 · Term papers · Jan 20, 07:51 AM
I think that garlic and onion are made to go together. Like coffee and cream. Separate, they’re very unique, but together, they mesh. They’re both very strong flavors and typically if a person does not like either, they will forgo the entire dish they’re prepared in because the flavors permeate everything they touch.