"sea salt" news and stories

Generally speaking, salt by any other name is still salt, and whether you used large flake sea salt or plain table salt, your food will still turn out well. This is especially true of savory foods. In things like sauces and soups, all kinds of salt will dissolve due to the heat of the dish and produce equally flavorful results. When adding a spice rub to meat or simply adding a sprinkle to food already on your plate, the salt will not only add flavor, but a small amount of texture and a bit of crunch. You might find that while the saltiness is the same, you prefer to use larger, flaked salt for that extra edge. Salads, too, are usually enhanced by adding a bit of salt and using a coarser salt will really enhance the veggies in your bowl.

Do you know your Black Salt from your Celtic Salt? Me neither. I only have Maldon sea salt in my kitchen - big flakes in a pot, some in the grinder and pounded into a fine powder by the pestle and mortar - but as this page shows there are plenty of different types with various uses.

As well as detailing various types, there are some interesting background snippets. For example did you know that table salt, which is refined, is mostly iodized in America and has been since the 1920's. This was to prevent a goiter (an enlargement of the thyroid gland caused by iodine deficiency). We require less than 225 micrograms of iodine a day; sea salt contains the iodine naturally. It is only mined salt that requires the addition.

[Image Andrew Barrow]

 

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Campbell's Soups are cutting back on sodium. Again. Since 1964, the company has tried several times to reduce the amount of sodium in its popular line of soups without achieving popular success; consumers complain about the high sodium content, but do not buy reduced sodium soups. Campbell's says that they have discovered a new type of sea salt that has 40 percent less sodium than regular salt, which will enable them to maintain the flavor of their soups while decreasing the total amount of sodium. A half-cup serving of Chicken Noodle will drop from 890mg to 670mg of sodium, with the use of the new salt.

Not surprisingly, Campbell's is not revealing the name or their source for the new salt.

The FDA recommends a maximum of 2400 mg of sodium per day - roughly 1 teaspoon of salt. For years, many people have been told to reduce the amount of salt in their diet, but new research shows that sodium intake may not contribute to an increased risk of heart-related problems. Campbell's says that their soups taste-tested as good as or better than the original versions, but whether they are good for you is between your taste buds and your doctor.

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My friend Megan is the proprietor of Sugar Star, a baking business in Portland, Oregon that supplies tasty treats like chocolate cake with Earl Gray-infused ganache and rosewater red velvet cake to coffee shops like Fuel Cafe on Alberta Street.  One of the things she makes that I love are Salty Brownies, decadent chocolate brownies topped with chunky sea salt.

I made a batch tonight.  Just use your favorite brownie recipe (or—gasp!—a box),  and when the brownies have about four minutes left to cook, remove the almost-baked brownies and sprinkle them lightly with rock salt. (I used a half teaspoon of pink, Hawaiian alae salt.) Continue cooking for the remaining four minutes of baking time. Remove from oven and serve as usual. The salt really makes the chocolate flavor pop. They are always a hit at parties. I'll never make brownies any other way.

[photo: Stefania Pomponi Butler]