As an avid sodium lover and a hater of bland food, I fear the day when my doctor tells me I need to cut back. I know I have a salt addiction problem, but I feel that it really does add to the food and just makes it tastier! The 3 that I've used regularly in my kitchen are sea salt, kosher salt and table salt. For a time, I used to think that they all tasted the same, but with just different textures and colors. But I've actually come to learn that using the right type of salt can make a difference in the outcome of your dish -- and this helps with my salt addiction, since I'm learning why I should add salt instead of just throwing a tbsp here and there just cause I want it to taste saltier.
There are 5 commonly used types of salt and it can actually play an important role in the quality of your food. While most of us use the standard variety that you can get for $0.33 a can, there exists a good number of options that are well suited for a different number of purposes.
Table Salt - this is a fine grained salt used by most of us in salt shakers and in our home kitchens. This salt is pretty neutral in flavor and dissolves quickly. It's mined from the underground salt mines and is heavily refined and processed. It's refined to remove impurities and it may include some additives, such as iodine for health reasons. I personally am not a fan of table salt because I feel it really doesn't have much of a flavor.
Kosher salt - this is a salt that's simply free from additives. Kosher salt can be fine grains or slightly larger crystals, and is most often used for canning, curing or meat brines. Kosher salt got its name because its crystals make it perfect for curing meat, a step in the koshering process. The lack of additives in the salt makes for a clearer brine and doesn't add any unwanted additive flavors during the preservation period. It's also great for all purpose cooking since it dissolves fast and the flavor disperses quickly. One of the reasons I love it is because the coarse crystals make it easy to add in a pinch full to a dish I'm making without over salting my food!
Sea salt - this is salt that's harvested after piping sea water onto a flat field, letting the sun evaporate the water out, and collecting the salt crystals that remain. Sea salt contains fine deposits of other minerals, which is one of the reasons why there are so many varieties. The area where the salt is harvested and the mineral properties of the water in that location give this salt a more complex flavor. I'd describe the flavor as more pungent and flavorful then the other salts, hence that could be the reason why I'm in love with sea salt. It can come both in fine grains or more granular and can be pretty expensive depending on the area it was harvested.
Fleur de sel - literally translated as the flower of salt, fleur de sel is a very expensive sea salt from the northern Atlantic coast of France. The grayish salt is complex in it's flavor and is prized for that particular flavor, the texture and the crunch. The fleur de sel is the very top of the evaporated salt layer and is comprised of flake-like crystals of salt. Consider it a special occasion salt when you're cooking dinner for a significant other and want to impress them, just sprinkle a little over food just before eating and let the magic happen!
Rock salt - also known as the industrial salt, it's
sold in large crystal format and has not been processed and is full of impurities. This salt is normally used as road salt and ice cream machine salt because it helps to regulate the temperature. It's mined from deposits in the earth and is not sold for use directly on food. It's normally packaged in it's organic, unprocessed form. And since we've been having some snow and ice storms coming through our area, use it on your sidewalks and driveways!
Who knew there was such a wide variety of the common table salt, and who knew there's such a thing as pickling salt or flaked sea salt, the lesser known varieties! But it definitely opened my eye to get great options out there and I'm rather excited to try more recipes that call for salt!
No comments:
Post a Comment