Thread: Toasting Salt

On Apr 4, 1:53*pm, Sqwertz <swe...@cluemail.compost> wrote:
> Recipes for Salt and Pepper Squid say to toast sea salt until it
> starts to darken.
>
> I tried that and it doesn't darken. *It just gets really, really hot
> and starts to explode violently.
>
> Would it be the impurities it the sea salt that would presumably
> cause it to darken? *My brand of sea salt it cleaner than most (La
> Baleine). *
>
> And would toasting salt really affect the flavor? *I would think the
> impurities would just burn, which would have drastically different
> results (maybe good, probably bad) depending on where the salt came
> from.
>
It's just an unthinking recipe. I have ground Sichuan peppercorns and
briefly pan toasted them for mixing with salt and that works.
Penzey's sells "Szechuan pepper - salt Roasted" and that works even
better. -aem

aem <[email protected]> wrote:

> On Apr 4, 1:53*pm, Sqwertz <swe...@cluemail.compost> wrote:
>> Recipes for Salt and Pepper Squid say to toast sea salt until it
>> starts to darken.
>>
>> I tried that and it doesn't darken. *It just gets really, really hot
>> and starts to explode violently.
>>
>> Would it be the impurities it the sea salt that would presumably
>> cause it to darken? *My brand of sea salt it cleaner than most (La
>> Baleine). *
>>
>> And would toasting salt really affect the flavor? *I would think the
>> impurities would just burn, which would have drastically different
>> results (maybe good, probably bad) depending on where the salt came
>> from.
>>
> It's just an unthinking recipe.

Unthinking recipe? Not sure what that means, but many of the
recipes I've read called for toasting the salt. Some separately
from the pepper (which seems right since you might burn your spices
waiting for the salt to turn).

Salt and pepper squid isn't the only recipe I've seen that called
for toasting salt.

> Penzey's sells "Szechuan pepper - salt Roasted" and that works even
> better. -aem

I prefer my peppercorns to be already split by roasting as this cuts
down on the grit by 99%. My teeth really feel the grit. I assume
that's what Penzey's has done.

-sw

Sqwertz wrote:
>
> Would it be the impurities it the sea salt that would
> presumably cause it to darken? My brand of sea salt it
> cleaner than most (La Baleine).

What else could it be? Pure sodium chloride won't be
affected by any temperature you can reach in your
kitchen. (Perhaps not my kitchen, but I've got stuff
I bought off eBay that can vaporize salt. :-)

> And would toasting salt really affect the flavor?
> I would think the impurities would just burn, which would
> have drastically different results (maybe good, probably bad)
> depending on where the salt came from.

If it's got those impurities, roasting is good.
The impurities may include untreated sewage,
which is better roasted.

On Fri, 4 Apr 2008 16:53:54 -0500, Sqwertz <[email protected]>
wrote:

>Recipes for Salt and Pepper Squid say to toast sea salt until it
>starts to darken.
>
>I tried that and it doesn't darken. It just gets really, really hot
>and starts to explode violently.
>
>Would it be the impurities it the sea salt that would presumably
>cause it to darken? My brand of sea salt it cleaner than most (La
>Baleine).
>
>And would toasting salt really affect the flavor? I would think the
>impurities would just burn, which would have drastically different
>results (maybe good, probably bad) depending on where the salt came
>from.
>
>-sw

Some sea salts, like fleur de sel aren't really cleaned before they
are packaged. They may have a little mud, algae, bacteria, etc. still
sticking to the salt. These things are said to add flavor - toasting
would probably alter that flavor. There can't be a lot there because
to be sold as salt in the US, it has to have a certain amount of
sodium chloride - 97%?

- Mark

"Sqwertz" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]..
> Recipes for Salt and Pepper Squid say to toast sea salt until it
> starts to darken.
>
> I tried that and it doesn't darken. It just gets really, really hot
> and starts to explode violently.
>


lol

I'm picturing this.



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On Fri, 4 Apr 2008 16:53:54 -0500, Sqwertz <[email protected]>
wrote:

>Recipes for Salt and Pepper Squid say to toast sea salt until it
>starts to darken.
>
>I tried that and it doesn't darken. It just gets really, really hot
>and starts to explode violently.
>
>Would it be the impurities it the sea salt that would presumably
>cause it to darken? My brand of sea salt it cleaner than most (La
>Baleine).
>
>And would toasting salt really affect the flavor? I would think the
>impurities would just burn, which would have drastically different
>results (maybe good, probably bad) depending on where the salt came
>from.
>
I can't imagine anyone trying to brown salt in a pan the way they'd
brown bread crumbs or seeds.

Maybe the salt your recipes tried to replicate was black salt or some
other similarly colored salt.


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"Mark A.Meggs" wrote:
>
> Some sea salts, like fleur de sel aren't really cleaned before they
> are packaged. They may have a little mud, algae, bacteria, etc. still
> sticking to the salt. These things are said to add flavor - toasting
> would probably alter that flavor. There can't be a lot there because
> to be sold as salt in the US, it has to have a certain amount of
> sodium chloride - 97%?

Would that the other 3% were as benign as
algae and mud. Where do you think the stuff
goes when people in France flush their toilets?

"Mark Thorson" <[email protected]> ha scritto nel messaggio
news:[email protected]..

> Would that the other 3% were as benign as
> algae and mud. Where do you think the stuff
> goes when people in France flush their toilets?

Not to Brittany where fler de sel is farmed. The infamous sewage spills
were in Marseilles and some time ago. The EU had made a big difference in
ecological matters.