The Different Kinds of Salt Crystals

Salt is one of the universal commodities in human history, a thing that few cultures have ever done without. It makes our food taste better and keep longer, and is not perishable like herbs and spices. Wars have been fought over it, great trading empires have been built over it and it has even been used for money -- "salt" is the basis of our word "salary." Today, salt can be purchased inexpensively at any store, and it is available in a bewildering variety of forms.

  1. Table Salt

    • Culinary salt is made up of two elements, sodium and chlorine. It was traditionally evaporated from brine or mined in mineral form, containing various impurities that provided a locally distinct flavor or color. Modern table salt is refined to a high degree of purity, giving it a pure white appearance and neutral flavor. Table salt also contains a form of iodine, to prevent the thyroid disorder known as goiter. Most brands include yellow prussiate of soda, an additive that prevents moisture from caking the salt into lumps.

    Kosher Salt and Pickling Salt

    • Kosher salt and pickling salt are two common varieties, both coarser than table salt. "Kosher" salt is something of a misnomer. Salt itself is "pareve," or neutral, but it is used to make meats kosher by drawing out the blood. Pickling salt, as the name suggests, is used for pickling or curing vegetables and meat. Both are free of iodine, which may cause undesirable flavors or coloration in preserved foods. Kosher salt takes the form of flat crystals, larger than those of table salt. Pickling salt is packaged in larger, irregular grains.

    Sea Salt

    • Sea salt is chemically identical to any other kind, when refined using modern machinery and techniques. Traditional techniques preserve the impurities found in seawater everywhere, giving a distinctively individual character to each area's salt. Crystals of sea salt take a wide variety of forms, from the large irregular grains of pickling salt to the delicate flakes of French "fleur de sel." England's famous Maldon sea salt forms in a pyramid shape.

    Using Other Salts

    • With so many varieties of salt on the market today, it is difficult to know which kind to use in a given dish. Delicate salts like fleur de sel are best used in subtle dishes, where their nuances may be detected. Other sea salts bring a distinctive color and flavor, and may be used as a foil to bring out the flavor of other seasonings. Smoked sea salt is good on grilled or barbecued meats or fish. Use coarse salt to season a roast chicken, or fine sea salt as a substitute for table salt.