My Favorite Food Things - Day #16 - Salt

Celtic. Table. Coarse. Sea. Kosher. Fleur de. Iodized.

Who knew there were so many varieties of salt?

There is a small glass bowl - just big enough for my fingers to plunge into - that sits next to my range. As you may have guessed, this is the bowl that the majority of my saline seasoning comes from. I use this bowl so often that I don’t bother keeping the lid on. This bowl is always full of Kosher salt, my favorite variety. It is also the saltiest tasting of all the salts which means you tend to use less.

When it comes to baking I stick with the traditional table salt. Table salt is the most refined of all the types. I say I use this for baking not because I like the taste or performance better, but because most baking recipes call for table salt. And for those that have added an inaccurate amount of salt to a baking recipe know that disaster is sure to happen. So I mainly use table salt in baking simply out of fear!

Occasionally I will use the coarse variety, the largest of typical cooking salts, when I am looking for that nice salty crunch.

Fleur de sel, flour of salt, is a hand-harvested salt and varies in flavor, color, and texture from region to region. This is a quick dissolving salt and is best used right before serving rather than in the cooking process. I tend to use fleur de sel on dishes that benefit from the salty taste – like salads, pork roasts, or chocolate desserts.

Check out this awesome reference website for a complete list with explanation. I am sure they wouldn’t mind if you also bought a few jars while you were looking around.

http://www.saltworks.us/salt_info/si_gourmet_reference.asp