Learn your way around salt cellar

Published 8:31 am Friday, February 24, 2012

My knowledge of salt was originally limited to exactly what I grew up with: containers of table salt for filling the salt shakers, measuring out for recipes and filling my maternal grandmother’s salt box.

Bags of pickling salt were on hand for the annual “putting up” of various pickles and relishes and, of course, so were sacks of rock salt for our eagerly awaited summertime hand-cranked ice cream. Bottles of seasoned salt, garlic and celery salts completed our supply.

For those of us just learning our way around our first kitchens, here’s a handy salt primer, courtesy of chef Heather Hunsaker of www.foodonthetable.com:

Iodized or table salt is the most common salt and has the strongest flavor. It is processed and refined, which strips away all natural minerals. Table salt is best used in baking because of its small, uniform size.

Kosher salt is unrefined, with no additives. The natural minerals come through, and the taste tends to be milder than table salt. Kosher salt is coarse and has large salt crystals, making it the perfect choice for curing meat, an important step in the koshering process and hence the name. Kosher salt dissolves quickly, making it ideal for savory cooking and it’s also particularly useful in preserving food because the large salt crystals help draw out moisture.

Sea salt is obtained by the evaporation of sea water and can come in many different varieties. It is best used for an added punch of flavor at the end of cooking, right before serving. Sea salt also compliments sweet flavor elements such as caramel and chocolate.

Rock salt is mined from the ground and is typically not sold for consumption because it is unprocessed. Rock salt is commonly used for de-icing roads in winter months. It is also used with ice in hand-cranked ice cream makers to regulate the temperature.

Pickling salt is similar to table salt; however, it is not fortified with iodine and does not contain anticaking chemicals, which would affect the pickling process. Pickling salt is the purest and most concentrated of all salts; therefore, less is usually needed. It is used for brining foods such as vegetables and meats.

Flavored salt is typically table salt with flavorings added. The most common and inexpensive varieties of this salt are garlic salt, celery salt and seasoned salt. These can be added during cooking to enhance the flavor.

The wide world of salt also includes a funky pink salt, and the varieties of sea salts from places such as the Pacific and France are available in fine, coarse and extra-coarse (for grinding in salt mills) as well as kosher-style flake salt. The special shape of the flake salt gives it the maximum of salt flavor with the minimum of salt used.

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