Thank you, thank you. I loved this lesson. It is tremendously useful. I recently finished reading Mark Kurlansky's SALT, and have been experimenting with different salts over the past few years, learning about the different intensities and varying amounts which are needed of each type. I've produced some sorely under salted dishes as I move away from table salt. Nice to know that it's the proper way to learn.
What about salt grinders? They seem to have become very popular. Is there any benefit to buying large crystals and grinding them at the last minute, or is the basic purity and composition of the salt the only factor?

That is a good question Jane; I don't know that there is any advantage to buying large crystals and using a salt grinder. The thing that I would not like about it is that I would not be able to really feel the salt. I season by feel now, that little black bowl that you saw in the video is my best friend in the kitchen; it is really never very far away from me.

That being said, I do have a pepper grinder, as I don't think "pre-ground" is a good as using peppercorns...but that's a whole other thing.

Hope this helps...and glad you liked the lesson!

I only use Kosher salt, not for religious reasons, but for flavor. I was surprised that it is normally sea salt. Table salt, especially iodized, has an iodine taste. Not something I appreciate.

I said I was surprised that Kosher salt was sea salt, but, given the extreme cleanliness required for Kosher foods, I am not going to worry about it. However, watching a Food Network television program on how some sea salt was produced I noticed that sea water was pumped directly into tankers from shallow areas of a bay on the US East Coast. It was transported to an evaporation building where the water was evaporated and the salt collected and sold. My problem is there was no consideration about what foreign substance (gasoline, oil, sewage, industrial chemicals, etc.) might be concentrated in the finished product. Man has a habit of disposing of waste in the ocean. Concentrating that was could be very detrimental.

Paul

I have been storing some Kosher salt in a small glass shaker that is usually used for Parmesan cheese. I have learned what a certain amount of salt looks like on food, so, to give an even coating, I use this large hole shaker.

Great lesson, thank you. I took a series of Italian cooking class at a local college. As we were gathering for the second class, one gentleman came in with his "high blood pressure" pills and stated that he was "messed up" because the instructor told us to salt the pasta water. "His mother never salted the water, and he wasn't going to do it either." Everyone sort of backed away and the class went on without change. The Instructor did keep his distance from the salt-phobic gent.
Also, your Chocolate Chip Cookies with Fleur-de-Sel were a huge hit at my niece's wedding rehearsal dinner. You've made me a hero several times now.

As I live in Northern Ireland, I have never seen Kosher salt on the market. What would an alternative be? We can get Maldon sea salt, table salt etc etc but not Kosher. It is obviously an American product.

While other salts would be good instead of Kosher salt, there is no real substitute for it. If you like you can order it online - http://www.amazon.com/Diamond-Crystal-Kosher-Salt-Pound/dp/B0011CX2M4

Hope this helps!

Hello
I will not use Kosher salt because it was made that way for RELIGIOUS reason. I do not believe that you should have to look all over the place, order it by mail and what not to have religious salt. I do not believe in that kind of approach, you are a non religious, non partisan school I hope. Your only "religion" is excellence, and I just love to cook using your recipes, but I will use sea salt.

We here at Rouxbe like kosher salt, as do many many chefs. We do not use it because of it is "Kosher-friendly" we just like it. It has a nice clean taste and it is additive-free.

We also do not have to order it online as it is available in many grocery stores, due to it's popularity.

For a bit more on kosher salt, here are a few links -
http://www.mortonsalt.com/attachments/Kosher_101_FINAL.pdf
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-kosher-salt.htm
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes-and-cooking/kosher-vs-table-vs-sea-salts/index.html

Also, here is a bit more info and even a video from the Diamond Crystal Salt Website. This just happens to be the brand that I buy as it the one that is sold here where I live. Cheers!

Regarding the RELIGION in Kosher salt:

The term "kosher salt" derives not from its being made in accordance with the guidelines for kosher foods as written in the Torah (nearly all salt is kosher, including ordinary table salt), but rather due to its use in making meats kosher, by helping to extract the blood from the meat. Rather than cubic crystals, kosher salt has a flat platelet shape. This is done in some salts by adding yellow prussiate of soda (sodium ferrocyanate). Because kosher salt grains are larger than regular table salt grains, when meats are coated in kosher salt the salt does not dissolve readily; the salt remains on the surface of the meat longer to draw fluids out of the meat.[citation needed]

The term "kosher salt" is largely restricted to North America; in the UK it is usually called "cooking salt" outside of Jewish communities with the term "koshering salt" [1] being used in those communities. In other parts of the world, it is also known as "coarse salt" or "cooking salt".

In North America, the term "koshering salt" has been proposed as more accurate and is sometimes used in industry (e.g. The Salt Institute), but it is rarely used in everyday language.

I use seasalt from Morocco. It has a sandy feeling to it. The only addition that it has is iodine. Does this affect its quality?

The addition of iodine in your sea salt will likely not affect it's quality. Also to answer your question, no iodized salt is not always bad. For more information you may want to do a bit more research on iodized salt as I am not the expert here.
Here are a few links you might find helpful -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iodised_salt
http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=69
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-iodized-salt.htm

The video showed using olives while cooking and I cannot image one would ever add salt to them. Although the answer on the quiz so states.

This was a really good lesson because I didn't realize how much different the salts were. I always used only table salts and now I will be experimenting with the others. I love the video's also, it helped to see how to actually do the technique which is many times more helpful than just having it written out for you.

We are not clear on which question you are referring to. In Topic 5 of this lesson, we discuss how to be conscious of using salt throughout the cooking process when certain components (i.e. olives) are naturally salty. Cheers!

Glad you liked the lesson and video. It's quite exciting to start experimenting with different salts. Happy cooking!

I know this is a beginners question but I am confused about salting red meat. In all the videos I have watched on this site, they all say to salt red meat after you cook it so it does not loose its moisture. Yet in the only actual salt lesson, they repeatedly salt red meat prior to cooking it. Can you please elaborate on this for me. Are there exceptions to the rule?

Not sure which videos you are referring to on this site that show salting red meat only after it has been cooked. Salting throughout the cooking process is essential for a well-seasoned dish.

You may want to check out the lesson on Preparing Premium Steaks, specifically Topic 3, which gives more information on this. Hope this helps!

How flavour varies for non-iodized table salt and kosher salt?

Shame on me, but i still can not feel flavour of salt itself...

Personally, I find the flavor of table salt to be much stronger and saltier than kosher salt. Have you tried doing a taste test? This is s good way to try to distinguish between salts. Also, if you have not already, you should watch the lesson on Seasoning with Salt. There is also a Drill-down called "Learn About Gourmet Salt" that you may want to watch. Cheers!

The table salt we have here is mostly non-iodized.

Also couldn't find Kosher Salt in local store...

I did tried the drill-down you noticed. Thanx.

I suggest that you just keep an eye out for different kinds of salts and buy them when you see them. Alternatively, you can also order a huge variety of salts online...trust me it is worth experimenting. Cheers!

I use to add salt to my dinner even before I tasted it. I have since stopped doing that.
However I have even stopped useing salt durning the preperation of the food because my wife is alwys asking if I have added any salt.
I'm glad this lesson has shown me the difference. Thanks for the lesson.

On another subject is there a way on the profile that you can she lessons I have not taket.

I really enjoyed this lesson but still a bit confused as to how much salt to add. In some instances you can't test to be sure. If I were adding salt to say pasta water, would 1 tablespoon of table salt be equivalent to 1 tablespoon of Kosher?

1 tablespoon of Kosher salt weighs less than 1 tablespoon of table salt. Depending on the salt used and how flaky it is it could be as much as 1 1/2 to 2 tbsp. to equal 1 tbsp. of table salt. One tbsp. of table salt weighs 15 grams so weigh 15 g of Kosher salt to find the equivalent. Then use a measuring to get an idea of how much it is.

You may also find it useful to watch the lesson on Brining as we go into much more detail about salt and equivalents in this lesson. Cheers!