My wife and I had Christmas at, well, Christmas, but our son could not make it home. Some we had another Christmas at the end of January. He gave me a set of salt and pepper grinders. I am set on pepper. but I'd like suggestions on what to put in the salt grinder as I have never used any "fancy" salt
Thanx!
I love to use coarse Himalayan Pink Salt in my grinder. I actually have some smoked, ghost pepper salt in there right now. I try to find the coarsest salt I can to put in the grinder. I have mine set pretty wide open because I love big chucks of salt crystals on my steaks.
Not trying to be contrary, but I see a salt grinder as "pointless". Salt is salt ( to a point) and grinding it doesn't release any "new" flavors or aromatic compounds like with pepper. I think the more expensive finishing salts are special because of their shape and the way they dissolve on the tongue--think Maldon or fleur de sel--so it seems to me like a bad thing to put them into a grinder. If it were me, I'd put whatever Kosher salt you ordinarily use at the table into the grinder. Or maybe a pink or black salt for the "sexiness" of the look.
Yeah, that was kind of my first thought too: any way you grind it it's still NaCl. But, as with many things there are often little subtleties that make a difference. The spice of life.
Salt depends on the application. For example, if you're just seasoning like at the table or during the cook then just regular table salt/granular is fine. I prefer Kosher, because the flakes tend to stick to the meat better during prep. With regards to flavor, there are subtle differences when using sea salt, himilayan, smoked, etc. So, really it depends on how you intend to use the salt. In my house, when prepping and cooking we use kosher, at the table, it's just regular iodized salt.
Like others have said, it all depends on what you're gonna use it for. A grinder doesn't add/release any extra flavors, it simply grinds the salt. But that is often needed :-)
If you haven't tried it, buy some Himalayan pink salt. I really like it for applying on the food after the cook.
Taste test: Take a small pinch of regular table salt and taste some. Now notice the flavor character initially, during and after tasting (top, middle and bottom note). Now do the same with Himalayan pink salt. You should easily note that it is much 'smoother' on the bottom note. That is why I like it at the table.
There are many salts, and each have their own application, plus our taste preferences vary, so try a few and then decide what goes into the grinder.
Kosher is a good one to buy, if nothing else its handy when your dry brining some meat as well as a table seasoning. Why not get some course sea salt too and smoke it too. I have been having some great results recently with my own smoked salt. Its amazing what a grind of smoked salt into a stew or other meat or fish dish can do in terms of depth and range of flavour!
I put coarse Pacific Sea Salt from Penzey's in my salt grinders. Yes, I could buy fine sea salt at HEB and put it in a shaker but what would be the fun of that?
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Unlike my favorite pepper grinder, I don't use the salt grinder when cooking ... what's the point when I've got a salt cellar filled with Morten's Kosher? I do use the salt grinder and matching (Peugeot) pepper grinder when serving and/or on the table ... and keep it loaded with coarse sea salt.
Last edited by MBMorgan; February 11, 2019, 10:16 AM.
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I’m with Spinaker and Henrik on this one. The pink himalayan has a wonderful finish to it. And can be found in a pretty large coarse, which would be perfect for a grinder.
I use salt parrillera (parrilla) salt here in Argentina. It is medium grind salt and the reason I like it is I can easily see the ampunt I am applying. I always seem to over or under do it with fine or coarse ground.
Thanx all for responding. I use table salt or kosher for cooking, kosher salt for brining, and table salt for serving. Almost forgot that I use sea salt for bread. I was leaning towards Himalayan pink for the grinder and saw some at the local Publix the other day, but didn't look closely at it. I will have to look closer to see what kind of grind it is next time visit Publix.
For the most part, a grinder would be for serving, so find something that suits your taste. Salt is not all the same. The heavy industrialized that we use here, Morton’s Kosher & Diamond Chrystal is useful as Ahumadora said referring to amounts, not types. Himalayan is a Rock Salt from India or Pakistan & has nothing to do with the mountains or the sea. It is good and has a good, distinct taste. Their are lots of different types, tastes, & textures out there, some for the different types & style of cooking we do. Explore, you will find something maybe of great interest to you.
A salt tasting is an interesting thing to do. The contrast between table salt and pretty much any other salt is amazing. Table salt, by itself, tastes 'funny" compared to other salts. Give a tasting a try.
Hey while we're talking about salt, here's something I just read (as I'm sure many of you have as well)...just picked up Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat and was surprised to note that kosher salt isn't all a standard size, as I had thought. Samin Nosrat, the author, notes that two of the more popular brands (Morton's and Diamond Crystal) are both great choices BUT differ in the size of their crystals. Morton's is something like twice as "salty" by volume so be aware of this if a recipe says X amount of kosher salt.
As an aside, it's a really excellent book not just for recipes (though it has those) but just sort of as an overall approach to cooking. Really good read.
That's right--and it's one of my few complaints about America's Test Kitchen. They go no further than saying "kosher salt". As MBMorgan (right below) notes, Meathead explains it well, both on this site and in his book.
Salt Fat Acid Heat is also on Netflix to watch if one does not want to buy the book. I’m sure the book is more in depth but the 4 part series is a great watch
Recently my wife was shopping at the mall so I was killing time in ‘Sur La Tab’ and they had an entire book dedicated to salt. Curious, I flipped through it and found it quite interesting. For example it said Kosher salt is short for "Koshering"...AKA drawing the blood out of an animal. So Kosher salt is designed to suck moisture out of meat. Great for brining, but do you want puddles on your steak prior to searing? It said there is better options for that.
I didn’t buy the book...just don’t have enough time right now to study salt, but for now at least I know to apply salt immediately prior to searing.
Last edited by Larry Grover; February 11, 2019, 04:03 PM.
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