Friday, May 28, 2010
Saturday, May 22, 2010
BBQ Turkey Meatloaf
Watching your girlish/boyish figure? Here's some low-cal comfort food: http://bit.ly/a0Olo9
Monday, May 10, 2010
The Salt of the Earth
The phrase, “the salt of the earth,” comes from the New Testament Book of Matthew and it has come to mean someone or some thing that is plain, simple and unaffected.
On the other hand, the culinary world – at least certain chefs – is having a love affair with fancy, expensive salts and I’m not sure I understand it all. Fleur de Sel, Gray Salt, Black Lava Salt and many others are sold at premium prices, but here’s one undeniable fact about all of them, including Morton’s in the round blue container: Their chemical composition is exactly the same.
From your high school chemistry class – NaCl – sodium chloride is sodium chloride, whether you scrape it from rocks along the shores of Brittany, or extract it from a deep mine in Utah.
Please don’t mistake this as a condemnation of salt. It’s not. When I do personal appearances, I make certain that my audience knows that the two most important spices in my kitchen are salt and pepper.
Here’s the problem, however, and it’s twofold: First, because we eat so much processed food in this country, our sodium levels (as a nation) are off the charts. The average person should have no more than 2200 mg of sodium a day. You can get that in a can and a half of certain soups. So while the calories and fat may be lower, the sodium is way too high.
Second: in our nearly two-decade love-affair with celebrity chefs and Food Network, we’re learning about “special” salts that come from different places around the world. I must admit that I have about 10 or more different salts in my pantry and I’ve tasted at least 10 more. But here’s the thing: they all taste the same. And when dissolved in liquid, you can’t tell gray salt from table salt. You know what the main difference is? Price.
The only compositional difference between these “gourmet” salts and regular table salt, to my knowledge, is that table salt is usually iodized. That is, iodine has been added for some alleged health benefit.
I prefer kosher salt – also known as coarse salt. Its crystals are larger, which helps me control the amount I use (and I like the feel, too), without additives, including color (natural or otherwise), it’s just pure salt. Here’s something else you should know about some of those expensive gourmet salts: Pink salt, for instance, gets its color from rust. Gray salt is gray because of silt and dirt on the rocks from which is scraped. Does that whet your appetite?
Despite their similarities, I do recognize that salt in some forms is necessary for appearance. What would pretzels be without those large crystals? How would we cure meats without curing salts? The term “corned,” as in corned beef is a different way of saying the meat has been salted for curing.
So this piece is not a condemnation of salt. I love the flavor and the way it can enhance other flavors. As I wrote earlier, it’s one of the two most important spices in my kitchen. Salt also has its place in the non-savory world of baking. Any bread dough, cake batter, pie crust, lemon curd, and so forth, would be nearly tasteless without the addition of salt – usually half a teaspoon or less.
So as Julia Child wrote about butter and cream, the same watchword applies to salt: Everything in moderation.
The fact is that the use of salt in cooking and at the table by the average American comes nowhere close to the RDA for daily sodium intake, the aforementioned 2200 mg. Our problem is in processed foods.
Remember that the salt of the earth – no matter what form or color it comes in – tastes salty. And that’s all you have to know about salt.
When it comes to sodium intake, however, it’s important to reduce your consumption of processed foods. Especially the stuff you’re feeding your kids. Take a look at the numbers on the packages and you’ll see what I’m talking about. From cereal to soup to snacks, add ‘em up and you’ll be astounded at how easy it is to go well past that 2200 mg mark.
Follow me on Twitter @KitchenGuyMT
(I wish to acknowledge my colleague, Chef Kevin D. Weeks, for the inspiration to write this column.)
On the other hand, the culinary world – at least certain chefs – is having a love affair with fancy, expensive salts and I’m not sure I understand it all. Fleur de Sel, Gray Salt, Black Lava Salt and many others are sold at premium prices, but here’s one undeniable fact about all of them, including Morton’s in the round blue container: Their chemical composition is exactly the same.
From your high school chemistry class – NaCl – sodium chloride is sodium chloride, whether you scrape it from rocks along the shores of Brittany, or extract it from a deep mine in Utah.
Please don’t mistake this as a condemnation of salt. It’s not. When I do personal appearances, I make certain that my audience knows that the two most important spices in my kitchen are salt and pepper.
Here’s the problem, however, and it’s twofold: First, because we eat so much processed food in this country, our sodium levels (as a nation) are off the charts. The average person should have no more than 2200 mg of sodium a day. You can get that in a can and a half of certain soups. So while the calories and fat may be lower, the sodium is way too high.
Second: in our nearly two-decade love-affair with celebrity chefs and Food Network, we’re learning about “special” salts that come from different places around the world. I must admit that I have about 10 or more different salts in my pantry and I’ve tasted at least 10 more. But here’s the thing: they all taste the same. And when dissolved in liquid, you can’t tell gray salt from table salt. You know what the main difference is? Price.
The only compositional difference between these “gourmet” salts and regular table salt, to my knowledge, is that table salt is usually iodized. That is, iodine has been added for some alleged health benefit.
I prefer kosher salt – also known as coarse salt. Its crystals are larger, which helps me control the amount I use (and I like the feel, too), without additives, including color (natural or otherwise), it’s just pure salt. Here’s something else you should know about some of those expensive gourmet salts: Pink salt, for instance, gets its color from rust. Gray salt is gray because of silt and dirt on the rocks from which is scraped. Does that whet your appetite?
Despite their similarities, I do recognize that salt in some forms is necessary for appearance. What would pretzels be without those large crystals? How would we cure meats without curing salts? The term “corned,” as in corned beef is a different way of saying the meat has been salted for curing.
So this piece is not a condemnation of salt. I love the flavor and the way it can enhance other flavors. As I wrote earlier, it’s one of the two most important spices in my kitchen. Salt also has its place in the non-savory world of baking. Any bread dough, cake batter, pie crust, lemon curd, and so forth, would be nearly tasteless without the addition of salt – usually half a teaspoon or less.
So as Julia Child wrote about butter and cream, the same watchword applies to salt: Everything in moderation.
The fact is that the use of salt in cooking and at the table by the average American comes nowhere close to the RDA for daily sodium intake, the aforementioned 2200 mg. Our problem is in processed foods.
Remember that the salt of the earth – no matter what form or color it comes in – tastes salty. And that’s all you have to know about salt.
When it comes to sodium intake, however, it’s important to reduce your consumption of processed foods. Especially the stuff you’re feeding your kids. Take a look at the numbers on the packages and you’ll see what I’m talking about. From cereal to soup to snacks, add ‘em up and you’ll be astounded at how easy it is to go well past that 2200 mg mark.
Follow me on Twitter @KitchenGuyMT
(I wish to acknowledge my colleague, Chef Kevin D. Weeks, for the inspiration to write this column.)
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