Tell me what I need to know about salt and when to use which type please.

Is kosher salt used for marinades because it doesn't contain iodine? Are course salts better that ground salt ? Can you taste a big difference between course Himalayan pink and sea salt?

Golden Fork
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8 Comments

C S.
C S. December 18, 2014
Do you know that iodine is added to salt to combat lack iodine in the diet which can lead to thyroid disease and the growth of goiter. It is not there gratuitously, although if you know that your diet includes plenty of iodine there is no need to add more in your salt. However, iodine in salt did drastically decrease the incidence of goiter in the US.
 
Kristen W.
Kristen W. December 18, 2014
Here's another article on this site that might be helpful:
http://food52.com/blog/3377-10-salts-to-know
 
QueenSashy
QueenSashy December 17, 2014
This article summarizes it nicely http://www.seriouseats.com/2013/03/ask-the-food-lab-do-i-need-to-use-kosher-salt.html
 
Susan W.
Susan W. December 17, 2014
I agree with Meaghan. It's really going to be opinion. I use Diamond kosher salt for cooking, baking...everything. I like that it's just salt and no other additives to keep it free flowing. It also has a nice flakey texture. I have used Grey's flake salt, Himilayan sea salt and a Hawaiian pink flake salt. To be honest, I don't notice a difference in taste, but I notice a difference in texture. I like flakes more than finely ground or little rocks.
 
Susan W.
Susan W. December 17, 2014
I also wanted to add: I get my special salts from The Meadow. Very cool store in Portland, Oregon and NYC. They specialize in salts, chocolates and flowers. They have a great website that you can peruse and see their takes, explanations and stories about different salts. Their website is www.atthemeadow.com
 
Golden F.
Golden F. December 17, 2014
My mainstay for pasta, veggies, and general cooking is Trader Joes sea salt in the round blue container. It's chunky like diamond Kosher and I think I use less than finer salt. I didn't like the idea of being forced to ingest the iodine so I switched to sea salt in the 70's.
I thought kosher salt was made for pickling, and koshering chickens for years and never bought any until I started cooking seriously.
 
Meaghan F.
Meaghan F. December 17, 2014
It sounds like you have a lot of questions, more than can probably be answered here, and a lot of the answers you get will be subjective by nature. That said, my thoughts on salt: iodized for baking or pasta water, kosher for everything else, specialty salts like fleur de sel or pink Himalayan used as "finishing salts" when (as the name suggests) you're presenting the finished dish. Some finishing salts have more flavor than others, even among different brands of the same kind. Don't be afraid to experiment and to learn from trying new things though!
 
Golden F.
Golden F. December 17, 2014
Thank you very much for your reply. After sharing a couple of recipes I was asked today why I used certain salts for different things and the only honest answer I could come up with was "I don't know". Habit? What I was shown? How a recipe was written? I never gave it any thought but have 6 different kinds of salt in my pantry I use regularly. I'll take your advice and experiment while I read more on the subject.
 
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