Some like it Salty

[Deleted]

Inspired by the mini discussion in Pet Peeves thread.
Do you salt your food before tasting? Do you crave salty foods? What kind of salt do you generally use? And, any other relevant comments that apply.

[Deleted]

I have really cut back on the salt without my doctor even telling me to. And it's true that once you reduce your salt intake, a lot of stuff tastes much saltier than before when you have to eat it the way it is presented -- for example, I now find things like salami much too salty, and I also immediately taste the salt in cookies, hiding behind the sugar.

[Deleted]

I love salt on certain foods,potatoes certainly being one. I occasionally have a salt craving and go in for salt and vinegar flavored chips.
I always taste my food before adding salt.
When cooking I generally use Kosher coarse salt or sea salt.I bought a sea salt and lavender mixture while in NY purely on a lark. I have no idea what I'm going to use it on and find the concept of these two flavors together odd.

[lagatta]

I love salt, but have cut back on it a lot and can eat a lot of foods without adding salt, or just a tiny bit. But adding lemon etc instead can be hard on the teeth... I find salt and vinegar chips much too salty but do love chips as in crisps or chips as in frites - rarely eat them though, but that is more because of all the oil fried at high temps and empty calories. I love a bit of nuoc mam in food, and that is VERY salty so it is important not to overuse it.

I bought some flaky sea salt and find it lovely indeed.

On the other hand, nowadays I find most tinned and ready-made foods far, far too salty. I've been trying to cook more chicken parts etc to use in sandwiches and salads instead of ham or other salted meat products. No doctor's orders - just listening to my middle-aged bod, I guess.

[imec]

Oct 5, 2009 11:42:43 GMT casimira said:

Inspired by the mini discussion in Pet Peeves thread.
Do you salt your food before tasting? Do you crave salty foods? What kind of salt do you generally use? And, any other relevant comments that apply.

Salt before tasting? - only if I know with absolute certainty that it hasn't been salted and then only certain things (e.g. fries, tomatoes, cucumber).

Crave salt? - more so than sugary foods - e.g. chips, popcorn, snack crackers etc.

What kind? - Standard for me is Sea Salt out of a grinder. Like lagatta, I've also been experimenting with other salts (Himalayan Pink Salt, Fleur de Sel, Cyprus Sea Salt Flakes and a big bag of Gros Sel de L'ile de Re which I bought in France).

[tillystar]

Chips I probably add salt before tasting. They just taste better drowned in salt and vinegar.

I have really cut salt out at home as the salt RDA for under twos is next to nothing when little star was weaned I cut the salt right out and started using very low salt stock etc as well as she just eats what we have. It makes me really watch the content in things we buy as well.

I have got used to no/low salt now and like K notice it in things. Although sometimes when she isn’t eating with us there are certain things that I make the most and go crazy with the salt – roast potatoes and risotto definately taste better with lots of salt. Oh and flakes of salt on salads with lots of vinegar

Although I am more sensitive to salt now I still love eating Lime Pickle out the jar and that is sooooooooo salty, but so good. One spoonful balances out all my being good in not adding salt

[fumobici]

What sort of alchemy allows anchovies to be saltier than pure NaCl?

If I really respect the cook, I'll never add salt or pepper- otherwise I taste first.

[Deleted]

Yes, anchovies are a strange phenomenon -- and yet I love them, obviously in tiny quantities.

I wish they could make smoked salmon with less salt.

[existentialcrisis]

I don't use too much salt, but I totally pack on the pepper!! Nothing better than freshly ground black pepper and sea salt. Sometimes I find seasoned salt really plays an important role in my cooking. And my latest discovery is smoked sea salt, which is lovely on top of tomato slices.

[Deleted]

Even though I have had some of the 'gourmet' salts, I am apparently unable to appreciate them. It all tastes the same to me -- salty.

One thing that I do know is the American refined salt (i.e. Morton's) is super salty compared to the table salt sold in France. Whenever my grandmother came to U.S., she would be totally tricked for the first couple of meals that she cooked and shocked by how salty the food would become with just a 'normal' quantity of salt.

Then she would adjust and have no more problems.

[bixaorellana]

I don't know how French salt tastes, but the refinement process changes the taste of salt. Mexican salt used to look "dirtier" than American salt, but it tasted better. That's because it only tasted of salt. I find that most salt in the US has a bitter component to it that doesn't belong in salt.

[Deleted]

I think in terms of Morton's, it is 'pure' salt from salt mines, whereas French salt is sea salt with a lot of stuff that is not NaCl.

[bixaorellana]

I suspect French salt is purer -- no bleaching agents.

I couldn't find a chemical breakdown, but did find this:

Originally, the company [Morton's] had added magnesium carbonate as an absorbing agent to ensure that its table salt poured freely; calcium silicate is now used instead for the same purpose.

Lots of fascinating information here.

[rikita]

i like some salty foods, but for food i cook, i don't tend to put a lot of salt on it, and very rarely do i ever feel the need to add salt to something someone else cooked - more the opposite, sometimes i wish they used a bit less salt... but i like salt in things that are supposed to be salty...