This types of salt guide will give you the lowdown on all the different salts, what they’re made of, what they’re used for, and what they can do for you, so that you can make the best choices in the wide world of saline seasonings.
Introduction
Salt, a simple staple of cooking and food preservation, is not just any old salt, because what you choose can dramatically affect the taste, consistency, and nutritional value of the food you eat. There’s so many types of salts, from table salt to sea salt, and they all have their own individualities and purposes.
1. Table Salt
- Description: The most common kind of salt found in a household is table salt. It is usually extracted from rock salt underground, and then purified. During the refining process anti-caking agents are added to it to make sure it will flow freely.
- Characteristics: It has an even grain and a clean white color. The flavor is consistent and straightforward.
- Uses: Ideal for everyday cooking and baking. Is used frequently in recipes where exact measuring is a necessity. The table salt is the type used in salt shakers and used to season food directly.
- Nutritional Information: Iodized salt is what regular table salt is, Iodine is added to it because it is important to the thyroid. This helps prevent iodine deficiency disorders.
2. Sea Salt
- Description: Sea salt is produced by evaporating seawater. It is more coarse and less refined than table salt, so it still contains trace amounts of minerals which add color and flavor.
- Characteristics: Sea salt comes in various textures and colors, ranging from fine to coarse grains and white to grey or pink. The minerals and the evaporation all change its taste and color.
- Uses: Sea salt is often used as a finishing salt to add a burst of flavor and a crunchy texture to dishes. It’s used in gourmet cooking and as a table salt because of the natural flavor that it has.
- Nutritional Information: Sea salt does have some trace minerals in it such as magnesium, calcium and potassium, however, not in large amounts. It usually has lower sodium content per volume than table salt, but not by much.
3. Kosher Salt
- Description: Kosher salt is called kosher salt because it is used in the koshering of meat to draw out blood. It is produced, by evaporating seawater, or mining it from salt deposits.
- Characteristics: It’s much more coarse than regular table salt, it has very large grains that are kind of flaky. It has a coarse uneven texture, almost flaky and light.
- Uses: Chefs like kosher salt because it is easy to pinch when seasoning and it covers the food evenly. It is used as a seasoning on meats, vegetables, and during the brining stage.
- Nutritional Information: Kosher salt doesn’t usually have iodine in it unless its added. Its larger grain size means it may have less sodium by weight compared to table salt, but the volume needed for a recipe is generally higher.
4. Himalayan Pink Salt
- Description: Himalayan pink salt is a type of rock salt harvested from ancient salt deposits in the Himalayan region, primarily Pakistan. It’s barely processed and it keeps its natural pink color from the mineral content.
- Characteristics: This salt is known for its distinctive pink color, which varies from light to dark pink. The color is due to minerals like iron oxide.
- Uses: Himalayan pink salt is used both as a finishing salt and for seasoning. It is also common on salt blocks for grilling and cooking. The salt’s vibrant color makes it an attractive choice for decorative purposes in culinary presentations.
- Nutritional Information: Himalayan pink salt has 84 trace minerals like iron, magnesium, potassium etc. They do advertise it as healthier, but the minerals are there in such trace amounts, that they do little in the way of dietary needs.
5. Celtic Sea Salt
Description: Celtic sea salt, aka Sel Gris or grey sea salt comes from the salt ponds of Brittany, France. It is hand harvested and still has its natural grey color because of the clay found in the salt ponds.
Characteristics: The Celtic sea salt has this nice, moist texture to it and is grey in color because of the clay and other minerals in the salt beds. The salt crystals are generally coarse and irregular.
Uses: Used as a “finishing” salt or to season food. The moist texture makes it ideal for use in cooking, as it can add a subtle briny flavor to dishes.
Nutritional Information: Celtic sea salt has a variety of trace minerals and electrolytes in it, such as magnesium and calcium. But then again, like all the other “fancy” salts, the mineral content is negligible nutritionally speaking.
6. Flake Salt
Description: Flake salt gets its name from its crunchy, flaky consistency, which is achieved by evaporating sea water in such a way as to produce thin, unevenly shaped crystals.
Characteristics: It has a delicate, flaky texture and dissolves quickly. It is bland most of the time, and it gives a nice crunch to foods.
Uses: Flake salt is usually a finishing salt, adding a crunch and a burst of flavor. It’s used quite frequently in gourmet cooking and as a table salt because of its texture and how it looks.
Nutritional Information: Flake salt is very similar to sea salt in nutritional value, with trace minerals there but in small amounts. The sodium content is comparable to other salts.
7. Fleur de Sel
Description: Fleur de sel is a deluxe sea salt that develops as a layer on top of salt pools. It is hand picked in like France and Portugal.
Characteristics: It has a light, flaky consistency and a mild, but intricate taste. These crystals are white or light grey in color and are very pure and tasty.
Uses: Fleur de sel is a finishing salt, it has a delicate texture and flavor. It is often sprinkled over dishes just before serving to enhance their taste and presentation.
Nutritional Information: Like other sea salts, fleur de sel has mineral impurities in it, but only in trace amounts. It is not because of some great nutritional difference but because it taste good and feels good.
8. Black Salt (Kala Namak)
Description: Black salt is a rock salt, kala namak, and it has a very unique dark color and taste. Its a common spice in indian food and has a distinct flavor.
Characteristics: Black salt is a dark brown to black rock salt that has a sulfur like taste, almost tangy, smoky. It’s color is due to the different types of minerals in it and the firing process when it’s made.
Uses: Black salt is used in South Asian dishes, including chaat and raita, for its distinctive taste. It’s also used as a spice and a flavoring agent in many dishes.
Nutritional Information: Black salt has all those neat trace minerals in it and it doesn’t have as much sodium as regular table salt. It is also known to aid digestion and is used for medicinal purposes in traditional medicine.
9. Red Salt (Alaea Salt)
Description: Alaea salt (red salt) is a hawaiian sea salt that is mixed with volcanic clay called alaea, which gives it its reddish color.
Characteristics: It’s pink himalayan salt and it has this reddish brown color and an almost earthy taste because it is clay from a volcano. It is usually coarse-grained.
Uses: They use red salt in hawaiian or pacific island foods. They use it as a finishing salt, and also in more traditional cooking, such as pork, or seafood.
Nutritional Information: Red salt contains trace minerals from the volcanic clay, but like other salts, its mineral content is minimal compared to dietary needs.
Conclusion
Understanding the different types of salt can help you make informed choices in cooking and seasoning. Whether it be the everyday table salt, or the more exotic fleur de sel and kala namak, each salt is unique and has its own properties and uses. Whether you’re looking for a salt to enhance your culinary creations or seeking specific health benefits, there’s a type of salt to meet your needs. You can raise your foods to another level and savor the subtle differences that the salts can add to your table.