Know Your Salt

Table salt, also known as common salt, consists of tiny, uniformly shaped crystals created during rapid vacuum evaporation. It usually includes anti-caking agents that help it pour smoothly. Fine-grain table salt dissolves easily, making it our go-to for most applications, both sweet and savory.

SHOPPING TIP: Avoid iodized salt, which can impart a subtle chemical flavor.

Coarse-grain kosher salt is raked during the evaporation process to yield flaky crystals originally used for koshering meat. Unlike table salt, kosher salt doesn’t contain any additives. Kosher salt is our top choice for seasoning meat. The large grains distribute easily and cling well to the meat’s surfaces.

SHOPPING TIP: The two major brands of kosher salt—Morton and Diamond Crystal—work equally well; however, their crystal sizes differ considerably, and this makes a difference when measuring by volume. We use Diamond Crystal when developing our recipes. Use this conversion: 2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt = 1½ teaspoons Morton kosher salt.

Sea salt is the product of seawater evaporation—a time-consuming, expensive process that yields irregularly shaped, mineral-rich flakes that vary in color but only slightly in flavor. Don’t bother cooking with pricey sea salt; we’ve found that mixed into food, it doesn’t taste any different than table salt. Instead, we use it as a “finishing salt,” where its delicate crunch stands out. Try it in our Radish Baguette recipe.

SHOPPING TIP: Since we are using it as a finishing salt, texture is the main consideration. Look for brands boasting large, flaky crystals such as Maldon Sea Salt.

These large, chunky crystals are too big to dissolve easily in cooked dishes, but they’re used around the kitchen for a number of odd jobs. Salt lowers the freezing point of water, so a rock salt and water solution will quickly chill a bottle of wine. Or mix rock salt with ice and you’re on your way to chilling homemade ice cream. The crystals also make a suitable bed for shellfish dishes like clams casino.

SHOPPING TIP: Buy food-grade rock salt, not the sort used to melt ice on roadways.

Commonly labeled pink salt, curing salt also answers to DQ Curing Salt and Insta Cure #1. This rose-colored salt contains sodium nitrite, which is a compound that inhibits bacterial growth, boosts meaty flavor, and preserves the color of fully cured bacon.

SHOPPING TIP: Find curing salt in specialty food stores or order it online.