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Question about salts

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Carla G

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Question about salts

by Carla G » Sat Jun 20, 2015 3:51 pm

I'd love to get into using different salts like I have so wonderfully experienced while dining out around town. I bought some Himalayin Pink coarse crystals for my salt mill. Mehhh. Not real impressed. Perhaps because, no matter how I adjusted my mill, the crystals broke down into a powdery mess rather than staying in a smaller crystal format. Is that the nature of this variety of salt? I think I prefer a good sea salt at this point. Could anyone recommend one they like?
"She did not so much cook as assassinate food." - Storm Jameson
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Joni L

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Re: Question about salts

by Joni L » Mon Jun 22, 2015 10:56 am

Great question! I'm a huge fan of kosher salt (always Morton's, store brands I've tried don't have the right consistency). But I do have sea salt and pink salt but I never use them. How about those salt pioneers out there? Share what you've learned! :)
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Re: Question about salts

by Robin Garr » Mon Jun 22, 2015 1:25 pm

I'm not too much help, I'm afriad. I've played around with some fancy salts, fell in love with Australian flake salt when I spent a few weeks Down Under, but at this point am back to the simple basics: Morton's Iodized for the pantry, used mostly for bulk jobs like salting pasta water or filling salt shakers; and kosher for cooking because it has the same flaky character as the fancy Australian stuff for a fraction of the price.
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Stephen D

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Re: Question about salts

by Stephen D » Wed Jun 24, 2015 4:28 pm

I think of salts in two ways- cooking or finishing.

Kosher is the best and most economical for cooking with. At the restaurant, we offer a brand that is called 'Falksalt' as a finishing salt. It's nice, without costing $1000 an ounce.

Finishing salts are where it gets fun, though. Black lava for appearance. Himalayan (like you said) powders and is ideal for salads and poached meats. Australian River Salt is a favorite on fois gras or caramel. A 1/2 and 1/2 kosher to Hawaiian (powdered) makes a Margarita look really pretty. Smoked salt from Bourbon Barrel Foods is a nice compliment to most anything.

If you're going to accent the food with a finishing salt, just don't cook with salt so you don't overdo it.
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Carla G

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Re: Question about salts

by Carla G » Thu Jun 25, 2015 7:02 am

Thank you Stephen! Thinking of salt in those terms helps me understand using them. So, pretty much, save the fancy stuff for finishing?
And just for curiosity's sake, which salt costs $1000 an ounce?!
"She did not so much cook as assassinate food." - Storm Jameson
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Re: Question about salts

by Stephen D » Tue Jun 30, 2015 11:42 am

Carla G wrote:Thank you Stephen! Thinking of salt in those terms helps me understand using them. So, pretty much, save the fancy stuff for finishing?
And just for curiosity's sake, which salt costs $1000 an ounce?!


I was being figurative.
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Carla G

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Re: Question about salts

by Carla G » Tue Jun 30, 2015 12:58 pm

A www see there! For a minute I was all excited about a possible saffron salt. (Which isn't such a bad idea now that I think about it.)
"She did not so much cook as assassinate food." - Storm Jameson
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Lora S

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Re: Question about salts

by Lora S » Tue Jun 30, 2015 2:39 pm

Carla,

A friend of a friend introduced me to finishing salts via Phoenix, AZ. A great website with information is http://store.golbsalt.com/

This web site explains the different types of salt and their uses as well as pairings. Hope it helps! Lora
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Re: Question about salts

by Carla G » Tue Jun 30, 2015 3:04 pm

Thanks Lora!
"She did not so much cook as assassinate food." - Storm Jameson
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Re: Question about salts

by Stephen D » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:52 am

That's a really nice website!

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