Knowledge Base > Barton Seaver - The Root of the Matter

The Root of the Matter

Barton Seaver - The Root of the Matter

This event was on Tuesday, February 15, 2022 at 2:00 pm Pacific, 2:00 pm Eastern

Root vegetables are the star of cold-weather cooking; hearty standbys that are in peak season now.

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Recorded

Question:

Can you please talk about the difference in flavor/ uses for table salt, kosher salt, and sea salt?

— Barbara Jefferis

Answer:

It is confusing only because we've made it confusing because in the end there's actually no difference. Excuse me. Here's the thing all salt seasoned food. Salt season has different amounts of sodium in it per volume of salt just in the way that the crystals form, which really presents the biggest difference to me. Yes, there are different. Chemicals in compounds that are also in the salt which can change flavors. I mean think about iodized salt versus sea salt but when you put that into a stew or sauteed this or that honestly the difference becomes so negligible in terms of flavor that if you can taste the flavor differences at all. They're lost in the dish. So here's my advice. Use a salt that you know how to use. Salt seasoning something is a physical memory. I'm going to reach into my salt pot here. And I'm going to season this piece of whatever food in front of me. And I know exactly how much salt I just added to it. Why because I have been using this box of kosher salt. The diamond crystal Redbox kosher salt I have been using this since 1996. When I first started cooking, okay. This is the only salt in every single kitchen that I have ever worked in. I know how to use this salt. Why because it's a physical memory. I can do it from over here. Like I I just know that's what's more important than the type of salt. If you use iodized and that's what you like go ahead and use it when I use iodized salt. I screw up everything I put it on why. Because this salt has so much greater volume per salinity than does kosher salt, which is tiny little crystals. As opposed to this which are big flakes Morton kosher salt is even bigger flakes the Morton brand so I don't use that because also I don't know how to use that salt very well and sea salt and you know, I stick with this because it works for me. It's relatively inexpensive and there you go. Sea salt is more expensive and I would have to learn how to use it. So whatever salt you want to use. There you go. Use that one and learn how to use it. You know. I hope that helps and reduces some of the confusion salting is a skill. It's not in an ingredient to me if that makes sense. It's the it's the practice of it that makes it worth using not just it's existence. There you go.
Barton Seaver

Barton Seaver

Chef, Educator, Author

bartonseaver.com