What is Sea Salt?
Does Sea salt really come from the sea? The answer is Yes!
If you ever swam in the Ocean and got toppled by a wave, you know without a doubt that there is indeed salt in our waters. When the water evaporates, it leaves salt in a natural form containing various minerals – this is called Sea salt.
Sea salt, like Kosher salt is granular in shape and texture. Sea salt can be used the same as Kosher salt in regards to cooking. But did you know that Sea salt baths are considered healthy and used to help various skin conditions?
The Dead Sea provides us with lots of sea salt. In fact, the Dead Sea is actually decreasing in size, meaning it is evaporating and leaving more salt behind. This is rather amazing because the Dead Sea is actually the lowest natural place on Earth going as far down as 1376 feet in some places.
Sea Salt ball
Sea Salt because it comes from various locations can have slight variations among brands depending on what water source it evaporated from. Most of the time however, once cooked or dissolved the taste differences are not apparent.
When to Use Sea Salt
First, do not use it for baking. The salt will not dissolve and spread evenly so don’t even try it. Use table salt.
Secondly, use it for finishing dishes, like for fish or last minute on a meal before serving.
What Not to do With Sea Salt
As mentioned, do not use with baking. But interestingly, do not use it in a metal grinder. Due to its higher moisture content, the Sea salt can corrode the metal parts.
Do not use it in place of table salt when cooking. Most recipes when mentioning salt are referring to table salt. However, I think this is preference. I rarely use table salt when cooking. In fact, I don’t use a lot of salt period so the larger Kosher or Sea Salt varieties are perfect for me.
Sea salt is more expensive than both Kosher and table salt. But because it is not used very often, it is worth having some on hand. Sometimes it is recommended to use a grinder for sea salt because of the size of the granules, but you can also purchase them in a salt container which is ready for direct use.
Liz
Related posts:
- Salt and Food – Which Kind to Use? I remember watching an Anthony Bourdain episode where he was in Sicily. He was visiting a place that made salt. ...
- Using Kosher Salt in Italian Recipes There are lots of different types of salt available for cooking, and believe it or not – all of which...
- GIFT IDEA 2: KOSHER SALT AND FLEUR DE SEL Missed Gift Idea 1? Visit it here. GIFT IDEA 2: KOSHER SALT AND FLEUR DE SEL Just like fat is...
- Five Tips For Cooking Pasta I did not grow up cooking Italian food, but I did grow up eating it. Although there is a big...
- Cooking Fresh? – Grow Your Own! This post is contributed by Kurt Reiger High Caliper Growing, Maker of the Smart Pots Every cook knows that fresh...