Specialty Sea Salts: do you use them?

just a matter of asserting territory

I thought you did that by throwing your Depends in a pentagram pattern around your abode.

OOOOOHHH, BURN!

RWJ

just a matter of asserting territory

I thought you did that by throwing your Depends in a pentagram pattern around your abode.

That's Hoke. It's SOP in his new neighborhood.

Robert:

Interesting.

I'll confess I was so intrigued with the truffled salt that I sprinkled it on one of several halibut steaks after I pulled them off the grill.

I was impressed; added a great earthy/funky perfume to the fish, and the flavor was fine. (preferred the halibut with my homemade fresh mango/papaya/pepper 'chutney' though)

Hoke, I can see that working pretty well since halibut has such a pure, clean flavor. I'll try it sometime soon.

But I do think that halibut lends itself well to the tropical flavors. I bet that it would be good with a mango/jalapeno relish underneath and a sprinkling of black salt on top.

rwj

Maybe it's my experience in chemistry, but I'm very leery of these exotic salts with gaudy colors. What guarantee is there that these don't contain trace amounts of dangerous heavy metals or something of that sort? "Natural" does not equate to "safe".

-Paul W.

just a matter of asserting territory

I thought you did that by throwing your Depends in a pentagram pattern around your abode.

That's Hoke. It's SOP in his new neighborhood.

Well, I have always wanted to be an astronaut...

[Jenise]

(I will taste any mixture I get, but my wife refuses to let me throw away condiments that we don’t like if we received them as a gift, and my shelves are full of bottles of flavored oils and syrups that just won’t go bad.)

Gifts! I'll bet we all know about those--I for one shall never have to buy balsamic vinegar again. And that's okay, at least I like balsamic vinegar, flavored oils? No. I make a few fresh for various dishes but same that come in bottles are never potent enough or fresh enough. Maybe you need to sneak them into the trash, like I did with my husband's old rugby shirts. I could get an Oscar for the innocence with which I deliver lines like, "Green with yellow stripes? Sorry, honey, I don't remember that one."

"Green with yellow stripes? Sorry, honey, I don't remember that one."

I'm writing all of this down...

Sometimes, I just claim that it went bad.

Yes, it's true, I was somewhat dismissive the last time this topic came around. And, yes, I do still think there's some snob appeal involved here.

That being said, I have tasted many of the artisan salts and there are some decided differences.

I still maintain, though, the principal differences among *most* of them that are just "salt" - that is, with no additives - are textural and visual and not in flavor.

This is where I have been teaching.


http://www.ingoodtastestore.com/Salts.asp

Texture, yes, but also appearance (not to be discounted!). Sometimes flavor, but you're right, that's a minority of the time.

I think that the appearance is key here. Sometimes I do taste a difference in strength but to me, salt is salt. I like to use them for visual effects.

There is one called Sel Gris that comes in rather rough crystals. I do find the taste to be a little smoother than kosher or table salt. I like to put this in a mortar (or is it the pestle?) with some 4-color pepper corn mix and grind it all up. We keep this on the table for seasoning.

rwj

It would be difficult to balance salt on a pestle and keep it there.

It would be difficult to balance salt on a pestle and keep it there.

Stuart has done it.

Stuart has done it.

Never listen to gossip, ducky.

-Paul W.

It would be difficult to balance salt on a pestle and keep it there.

Thanks, Larry. I'll probably never forget this now.

rwj

I have had my suspicions for awhile. But, after reading this thread -- I am absolutely convinced. YOU PEOPLE ARE A LITTLE WEIRD!

Nothing much more exotic than Fleur de Sel. But, the rest are on my TO DO list, especially after reading this thread.

It would be difficult to balance salt on a pestle and keep it there.

Stuart has done it.

Only on the equinox.

I have had my suspicions for awhile. But, after reading this thread -- I am absolutely convinced. YOU PEOPLE ARE A LITTLE WEIRD!

I'm completely normal, but I sometimes wonder about the other people in this group.

I have had my suspicions for awhile. But, after reading this thread -- I am absolutely convinced. YOU PEOPLE ARE A LITTLE WEIRD!

Nothing much more exotic than Fleur de Sel. But, the rest are on my TO DO list, especially after reading this thread.

A *little* weird? After all these years and all this work all I can get is "a little weird."

(And anybody who signs off with a quote from a priest whose surname is evocative of an avian eunuch might also be one or two oars short of a crew.)

I have had my suspicions for awhile. But, after reading this thread -- I am absolutely convinced. YOU PEOPLE ARE A LITTLE WEIRD!

Nothing much more exotic than Fleur de Sel. But, the rest are on my TO DO list, especially after reading this thread.

I'd have to agree with Chef Carey. I've worked damned hard to be more than "a little weird". But I LOVE your signature...weirdo.

rwj

[Robin Garr]

the principal differences among *most* of them that are just "salt" - that is, with no additives - are textural and visual and not in flavor.

Well, yahbut ... textural and visual elements are important too, right? I'd argue that a meal with nothing but soft textures - or nothing but beige colors - wouldn't be particularly appetizing. Good food, like good wine, ought to be a feast for all the senses, not just the taste buds. But you know this.

In any case, I'm not absolutely convinced that the presence of mineral elements doesn't alter the flavor of sea salts a little. I'll try a little Murray River pink flake and Hawaiian Black Lava in a side-by-side taste test with breakfast, and report.