How to Season with Salt

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!

I've been using Kosher salt for years--thanks for thy explanation, Randy. The Morton Kosher salt comes in a cardboard box. It was so hot last summer that the box seemed to sweat and fall apart. I finally transferred it to a plastic bag and put some pasta in with it to absorb the moisture. I have a shaker with larger holes and put pasta in it too. I guess it's still okay. I just pulled various salts from my pantry and found three kinds of sea salt, two of which contain yellow prussiate of soda (anti-caking agent). Is this bad? I also found a French sea salt with coarse crystals. When I bought it I thought it would be the consistency of Kosher salt, but it's really big. How would you use it? Thanks for such an informative video.

To answer your questions about the salts you found in your pantry, I would say that whether you want to use the salt with the anti-caking agent, which is a man made preservative, is up to you. If I was going to use it up I would likely just use it to season my pasta water.

As for the salt with the big crystals, you could use a salt grinder or any grinder for that matter to grind it smaller. If it was not expensive then of course you could also use it to brine etc. Hope this helps. Cheers!

Stephanie H - You asked if the anti-caking agent was bad. In my earlier comment I noted (from wiki): "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)."

So, this seems to be rather common, but I'm no expert.

You're right. I reread your message. Well, I went shopping yesterday after reading all about salts and started reading labels. The Morton Kosher salt also has Yellow Prussiate. Disappointed! Now I know to look for Diamond Crystal. According to Cook's Illustrated, 1 tsp table salt =1 1/2 tsp Morton Kosher=2 tsp Diamond Crystal Kosher salt, so it's finer. My big sea salt wasn't inexpensive. I may try finishing something with it. It tastes really nice.

should i use diffrent types of salt or just kosher awhile ago i bought truffle salt because of the nice smell that it has i also have bought pink himalayan salt crystals but im still having some problems of what type of salt with the right foods so do i use diffrent salts for diffrent foods and what type of foods can i use with the truffle salt.

frank

The most important thing is to season properly throughout the cooking process. Kosher salt is a good everyday salt to use for this.

The specialty salts that you talk about are best used to finish the dish. A bit at the end (almost like a garnish) will highlight their unique flavors. Unless you have money to burn, specialty salts are often quite expensive so they are not usually used throughout the cooking process.

Try not to get too hung up on which salt goes with which food either. Just get in there and start cooking and experimenting. Focus on cooking and seasoning the food properly. Fancy salts mean nothing if those two things aren't done properly. Hope this helps!

I liked this lesson. I do salt though out cooking. I have started using Medirainan salt and I am not fond of the lesser salt favor it gives. will experiment using it to finish off foods......

Hi, I liked learning bout all the different types of salt and which ones are best used for cooking. However, I got confused a little bit with the anti-caking agent term.
So my question is Is anti-caking agent good or bad? should I find kosher salt without this anti-caking agent?
So far all the salts I have found have this anti-caking agent.
thanks

We prefer and mostly cook with salts that have no additives and are 100% natural. The anti-caking agents present in certain salts (i.e. most table salts) are not natural. Cheers!

I liked this lesson. I do use Fleur de sel in cooking. I think the Kosher Salt will be better to us while cooking instead mainly of the price. Is there a certian brand of Kosher Salt that is good to use? I have grown up tasting while cooking . I find it hard to use measuring tools but on some receipes you do need to follow close.I am learning so much ,its the little things one never thinks about that can make or brake a dish.

We use a brand called Diamond Crystal (only one that seems to be available where we are) but Morton's is also quite popular. Cheers!

I loved this lesson. It makes much more sense to me to add the salt all during the cooking process. I am a home cook that has mostly just followed recipes, so I put the required measured salt in all at once. This lesson definitely helps me to understand the seasoning process and how to do it properly.

Thank you so very much

Louise

It seems that there is a lot of salt added in the lessons. I have family who are on restricted salt diets. How do I deal with that in making dishes flavorful without risking their health?

Seasoning throughout the cooking process and not using table salt generally means that less salt is needed. We often use kosher salt, which is what we used for most of this lesson, and it is quite a bit less salty than table salt. The crystals are also bigger which may make it look like we are using more.

That being said, if you are looking to cut salt out or at least cut it way down then you are at least on the right track by making your own food from scratch. Most, if not all, processed foods are extremely high in sodium. Be sure to check the labels of anything you add that you did not make yourself. Soy sauce, pre-made stock, etc etc. A great way to add flavor to dishes without the addition of more salt is to things like spices and/or herbs to your cooking. See the lesson on "How to Use Herbs" for more information on when and where to add herbs. Hope this helps. Cheers!

Otherwise stated, does salt have an expiry date? a shelf-life? a point in time when it is of little more good than salting roads?

Salt does not expire, but if there are added ingredients, such as herbs, spices or iodine, this will reduce its shelf life. Cheers!

i would like to learn how to shop, use, and purchase different kinds of salt.

Just curious to know if you have watched the lesson on "How to Season with Salt" and also the drill-downs (tip and technique videos such as "Learn About Gourmet Salts" etc.

If you type in "salt" in the search field (the top right of every page) and then click on either the "Cooking School" or the "Tip & Technique" tab you will find many sources of information regarding salt. Cheers!

Ok, I can understand using a gourmet salt as a finishing salt, which seems to me to be more about tecture than taste. Other than that why waste your money with anything other than kosher salt?

To each their own. Some people prefer to cook with Kosher salt, some people prefer gray salt and some prefer other types of sea salt. It's really up to you, your tastes and your budget. The best way to find out what works for you is to experiment. Finishing salts add great texture and bursts of flavor but for everyday cooking, Kosher or sea salts are just fine...as along as they don't have any other preservatives in them. Cheers!

I am glad to have found out that my " salting" habits were not so far off the experience you propose in your class. Yet my experimenting habits probably spoiled some good pink himalayan salt, since it comes in big crystals (which my hubby does not appreciate much munching through) and it is not as salty as the table salt we used to use (ended up with quite distateful dishes)...I put both in my high speed robot with its sharpest blades, now it is quite fine yet since I did not read the label of the table salt I would not know if I have mixed some additives unfortunately.
Looking forward to enjoying the "Fleur de Sel", I dont mind the chunks! Learning plenty !

I notice in several of your recipes you suggest using non-stick pans. There is a 9" one suggested for the Tortilla de Patatas. A large one is suggested for the spaghetti aglio e olio. What size is a large one?
At present I don't own any non-stick pans. What sizes would you recommend that I start off with if I want to purchase about 2 or 3?
Only fry pans? Thanks.

A large one is about 12 inches in diameter. It depends really what you are going to be making. I would start off with an 6 or 8 inch (if you want to make things such as omelets) and a 12 inch pan as well. Then see if you need anything in between according to your needs. Cheers!

As a health conscious cook I tend to use far less salt than is recommended in recipes. Instead of salt I'll often use ground celery seed and/or kelp granules both of which tend to be on the salty side. Also as mentioned the use of herbs and spices can help nearly avoid the use of salt. As has been previously mentioned make sure and taste as you go. Trial and error has been the method I have used to learn how little or much I use.

It's truly amazing as one delves into the use of herbs and spices how very flavorful food can be using less salt. Keep in mind, however that even on a salt restricted diet we all need some salt in our diet.

One additional point of interest: My favorite cook book author is James Beard. As a rule I use half the salt James recommends as he obviously had a saltier palate than I have.

Interesting lesson. I took it after reading the chapter on salt in "What Einstein told his cook". It made it clear to me that salt is salt, in whatever form it comes in, but the additives (clay, minerals etc), be they natural or otherwise, are what imparts different flavours to the product not the salt which is of course sodium chloride. I also hadn't realised that some sea salts don't necessarily come from the sea, rather dried sea beds! The chapter and book I mention are well worth a read.