Different kinds of salt

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I buy Sea salt as the Large crystals, Lo-Salt, regular table salt and Chinese salt (MSG).

and if it counts, I buy Celery salt too (nice in a Virgin Mary).
 
I have large and small crystal sea salt, koshering salt (use it the most), Jurasic salt and sel gris. A chemist frined of mine also made me some Sel Atlantique from my local beach town. Fun to have on the table!
 
It is salt. Kosher, table, or sea, whether it's white, blue, grey, or green and yellow stripes, it is JUST salt. Put it on your food, and it makes the food taste salty and jacks up your blood pressure a few points. Some people just make WAY too much hoopla over the oldest and most common seasoning in the world.
 
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ive used...

Ive used Kosher (used mostly), table salt ( never used anymroe), sea salt (only occasionally), and red/pink hawian salt (only occasionally).

Ncage
 
I pretty much stick with my kosher salt...I love the feel in my fingers and prefer it much more than table salt. I haven't even really paid attention to the other types of salt. I've heard mention of sea salt and gray salt but because I'm so happy with my kosher salt its never even crossed my mind to look at the other types while at the store.....let alone buy them. I mainly only use the Mortans table salt to thaw out meat.
 
Caine said:
It is salt. Kosher, table, or sea, whether it's white, blue, grey, or green and yellow stripes, it is JUST salt. Put it on your food, and it makes the food taste salty and jacks up your blood pressure a few points. Some people just make WAY too much hoopla over the oldest and most common seasoning in the world.

I really wasn't trying to make a hoopla about salt, I was just wondering what kinds people used.
 
I do not buy or use *supermarket variety* salt because it contains an additive that makes it "free-flowing". I can taste this in the salt and don't like the taste.

Kosher salt is the standard salt in my kitchen. I buy it in one-pound boxes and have a small, open container with kosher salt next to my stove so I can easily get what I need for my cooking.

I also buy organic sea salt, but the taste of the salt is very dependent on the brand, so I can't give you specific recommendations. Some sea salts are a fine grind (like ordinary salt) and some are a coarse grind (like kosher salt or larger). I have purchased organic salts in a fine grind that are distinctly saltier than the equivalent mesaure of supermarket-variety salt.

Others may disagree, but in my experience, there is a wide variety in the taste of salt.

If you want to explore salt but keep the price at a reasonable level, I would recommend seeing what is available at a local natural food store.
 
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subfuscpersona said:
I do not buy or use *supermarket variety* salt because it contains an additive that makes it "free-flowing". I can taste this in the salt and don't like the taste.

Kosher salt is the standard salt in my kitchen. I buy it in one-pound boxes and have a small, open container with kosher salt next to my stove so I can easily get what I need for my cooking.

I also buy organic sea salt, but the taste of the salt is very dependent on the brand, so I can't give you specific recommendations. Some sea salts are a fine grind (like ordinary salt) and some are a coarse grind (like kosher salt or larger). I have purchased organic salts in a fine grind that are distinctly saltier than the equivalent mesaure of supermarket-variety salt.

Others may disagree, but in my experience, there is a wide variety in the taste of salt.

If you want to explore salt but keep the price at a reasonable level, I would recommend seeing what is available at a local natural food store.

Thank you so much, your post was very informative. JoAnn
 
I have tried different types of salt, but have never been able to detect a difference, I did a blink taste test once and found the flavors identical (with the exception of table salt which has a metalic taste). For me, the difference is in the crystal shape and size. If you sprinkle a large crystal salt on a tomato slice then you will have a different taste experience then if you sprinkle very fine small crystal on the same tomato. One will disolve right away while the other will give you a salt crunch as you bite into it. That is reason enough for me to use different types.
 
GB said:
I have tried different types of salt, but have never been able to detect a difference, I did a blink taste test once and found the flavors identical (with the exception of table salt which has a metalic taste). For me, the difference is in the crystal shape and size. If you sprinkle a large crystal salt on a tomato slice then you will have a different taste experience then if you sprinkle very fine small crystal on the same tomato. One will disolve right away while the other will give you a salt crunch as you bite into it. That is reason enough for me to use different types.

The large crystal salt on the tomato sounds like a great idea. Thanks.:)
 
Organic salt is an oxymoron, considering all salts are minerals and therefore inorganic substances.
 
JoAnn L. said:
The large crystal salt on the tomato sounds like a great idea. Thanks.:)
JoAnn,
I have a variety of salts, red, pink,sal de fer, grey, and my sis added to my list with a salt box and salts for Christmas. I just tried a grey salt that has sun dried tomatoe bits and garlic in it..I used it in a dip loved it. Now I'm going to mix it and another grey salt that has crushed rosemary and garlic and sprinkle it on top of foccacia after oiling the top..Should be yummy.. I hope you try several of the salts and see what you think..Even if I couldn't taste much difference, the fun of using them at the end of cooking to liven up the food gives me pleasure..I do taste a difference in the salts though.:)
kadesma
 
subfuscpersona said:
...I also buy organic sea salt,...

You've been scaqmmed by improperly labeled product. As the others have said, the organic label on salt is irrelevant as it is a mineral and therefore inorganic.

It's like buying a certain brand of strawberry jam because it's labeled "Contains no Cholesterol"...
 
JoAnn L. said:
Do you use any of the different salts that are on the market? I just use Kosher and table salt. I didn't know there were so many kinds.
Whole Foods Market : Products : Salt

I am going to a Whole food store next month, so can you give me any ideas on what to look for? Thanks.
JoAnn, I've gotten into serious conversations on this topic and have even become convinced to try to try fleur de sel but found myself constitutionally unable to actually lay down $25 a pound for salt. If you decide to go exotic please report your results to us.


I keep:
  1. Kosher salt for almost everything.
  2. Table salt (not iodized) to disolve or disappear quickly.
  3. Margarita salt, which are large crystals, thinly shaved, that adhere nicely to the rims of glasses.
  4. Rock salt for winter walkways and use in a salt grinder, bought by mistake several years ago, that produces a grind of widely various sizes with each twist.
 
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i've never been bold enough to go crazy on the pretty pink or black hawiian salts, but a couple of years ago, i picked up a canister of mediterranean sea salt. the brand was "alessi" and it was quite readily available at the regular grocery store for a reasonable price. wow, what a phenomenal difference from the regular old morton's table salt. i described it to a friend as being similar to the difference between raw/demerara sugar and refined table sugar: instead of just plain one-note sweet, there is a fuller, rounder taste. and for that sea salt, same thing, instead of just "salty", there's a more interesting, richer mineral flavor. the texture is also just wonderful, so much smoother and softer and dissolvable than the little micro-rocks of table salt. i keep mine in a little square glass canister right next to the stove, with an old junker (inert plastic!) tsp measuring spoon sitting in there for easy access.
 
Yes these salts can be expensive, but I've shopped around and managed to find small amounts to try before I buy a larger expensive amount...As to taste difference, it isn't overpowering, but there is a difference..And the salts that have added things like garlic and sun dried tomatoes are very good.

kadesma
 
i primarily use kosher salt, but i also use mediterranean sea salt.

next up, i'm experimenting with SMOKED sea salts like alder-smoked and pecan-smoked salts.
 
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