Take It With A Pinch Of Salt!
Discover > Texas Home Cooking > Take It With A Pinch Of Salt!
Have you ever wondered how this phrase came into existence? It is said the great ancient King Mithridates had a recipe for a poison antidote that went something like this âTake two dried walnuts (how long do walnuts last?), two figs and twenty leaves of rue; pound them together, with the addition of a grain of saltâ.
The idea behind this was that food was more palatable when salt was added to it. Now here we are, millennia later using this phrase to describe something that is hard to digest.
The story of salt is so engrossing, chances are after reading this, you will have a newfound respect and admiration for the humble old salt in your pantry
Origin Of Salt
Salt was first discovered by animals, who wore down paths that led to salt licks. Humans followed these paths and settlements emerged from them. Once the diet of man changed from salt rich game to grains and cereal, the need for salt increased.
But the salt available was insufficient. This scarcity caused the mineral to become valuable, and as civilization grew, salt became one of the worlds principal commodities.
Can you imagine, the salt we eat today was so valuable that it was used as currency?! In the 6th century, Moorish merchants of the sub-Sahara regions traded salt with gold at a rate of ounce per ounce!
In Abyssinia, rock salt (how long does rock salt last?) was the coin of the region.
The Africans used salt cakes as money. So, you get the picture. Salt played a crucial role in the economies of countries throughout Europe and Asia and rulers taxed it heavily so it could be a major source of revenue.
Many routes and roads were developed due to the trade of salt. The very famous road leading from Morocco to Timbuktu crossing the Sahara Desert carried salt traders and was quite busy. The Via Salaria, or the salt route was the busiest of roads that led to Rome.
Roman soldiers marched these roads and merchants drove their oxcarts full of salt coming from the salt pans of Ostia. A soldierâs wage came to be known as âsolarium argentumâ. Fun fact-The word âsalaryâ was then derived from this.
High salt taxes eventually led to many historical movements. For too long, the French commoners were forced to buy their salt from the royal depots. The tax they had to pay for it was so high that it caused a stir among the public which went on to become the fully fledged French Revolution.
Much recently, Mahatma Gandhi led a mass movement in India in 1930 to protest the high taxes levied by the British on salt.
In the early days, salt was used for almost everything. It prevented putrefaction so it was used to coat meats and other foods that required preservation. Salt was also used for medicinal purposes as an antiseptic and to reduce tissue swelling.
History of Salt in the USA
Long before the arrival of Europeans, across the USA, native Americans produced salt from saltwater springs. The large-scale production of salt from brine springs started in the 1800s. The first underground mine was started in 1869.
During the 1830s, there were 442 salt works on Cape Cod. Mechanical evaporation in multiple pans began in 1833, along with the process of purifying the brine prior to evaporation. The result was a clean, white-colored salt. Advancing in this direction gave rise to the concept of crystallizing salt.
Rock salt deposits were found through drilling and soon conventional salt mining was started. Today the states of Kansas, Texas, Louisiana, Ohio, and Michigan are the main salt mining states of the USA.
Methods of Extraction
Salt is mainly extracted through three methods in the USA.
Solar Evaporation
Solar evaporation is the oldest method of extracting salt. This method is mostly useful in places with warm climates and steady occurring winds. It involves as the name suggests, evaporation of shallow pools of saltwater through the power of the Sunâs energy.
The salt is then gathered by harvesting machines. Any impurities are drained and discarded before harvesting.
There are two types of pools used. The concentrating pool collects the salty water which is concentrated. The crystallizing pool is where the salt is actually made. Brine is continuously flown through this pool and since the solution is saturated, pure salt crystallizes as the water evaporates.
Rock Salt Mining
Underground rock salt mining is the most used method of salt extraction. Large mining machines are lowered into the underground salt mine through shafts. Salt is mined through the room and pillar method.
Care is taken to leave back solid salt pillars to provide support. The salt rooms are blasted with explosives and the resulting rocks of salt are hauled away to processing machines.
Salt is found in domes or in veins in the earth both of which are mined the same way. The salt domes of North America are mostly found from Texas to Alabama and underwater in the Gulf of Mexico.
Vacuum Evaporation Method
This method of salt production is through the evaporation of brine by steam in huge industrial evaporators called vacuum pans. In this method, wells are drilled far deep into the salt deposits and water is pumped down one of the wells.
The salt dissolves into the water which is then passed through another well through connectors and collected into large tanks.
The brine is then pumped into vacuum pans. Vacuum pans are almost three story high closed vessels under vacuum. High pressure steam is applied to the vessels which causes evaporation of water and leaves behind salt. This method is known for producing fine and pure salt.
Salt derived from each process has a different texture and different flavor profile. There are many salts used in cooking today and that have various nutritional benefits for us. The sodium and chlorine present in salt help maintain cell balance, blood sugar levels and blood circulation.
Sodium is mainly responsible for preserving bodily electrolytes like potassium, calcium, sodium and bicarbonate. Without it, your brain would quite simply put, forget to send electrical impulses to your body!
But have a lot of it and chances are you will be bloated. Excess salt retains water in the body and causes blood pressure levels to spike.
Underconsumption of salt is not desirable either. Low salt means low sodium. Electrolyte imbalance arises in the body due to low sodium which can cause headaches, disorientation and confusion.
Honestly, I canât think of a more important ingredient than salt! As of late, I have turned to using less processed, and more natural salts in cooking for my family. There are unmatched nutritional properties that less processed salts hold in comparison to the processed ones.
My Favorite Ones Are
Sea Salt
Sea salt (how long does sea salt last?) comes from the evaporation of sea water and is usually unrefined and less fine. It contains some of the minerals of the water, like zinc, iron and potassium.
Sadly, with the rise in water pollution, the unrefined salt can contain pollutants like microplastics. It also has less iodine than the refined table salt that we normally have in all our homes. I would therefore say, itâs a good idea to balance your consumption of sea with other earth-bound salts.
Himalayan Pink Salt
The beautiful Himalayan salt comes from the seabeds in the mountain ranges of the Himalayas. The iron content in the salt gives it a rosy hue.
This salt, my friends is supposed to be the gold standard of salts. Reportedly with 84 essential trace elements, pink salt is believed to be highly beneficial for you. It is said Himalayan salt improves blood sugar levels, promotes healthy pH on your cells, strengthens bones and aids in efficient metabolism functioning.
Celtic Sea Salt
Also called sel gris or grey salt, the Celtic sea salt is extracted from the tidal ponds off the French coast. It is chunky, moist and greyish in color due to the presence of natural clays. It has benefits similar to those of the Himalayan salt but is more expensive due to the manual labor involved in its extraction.
Black Salt
The Black salt (how long does black salt last?) or the kala namak of India gets its name from the charcoal color it is. The salt has a deep black color due to the way its processed. The salt is packed with charcoal, herbs, bark and seeds and fired for 24 hours in a furnace. Once cooled and aged, it derives the black color. The black salt has a very pungent eggs like odor. Did I mention it is extremely salty too? It is widely used in Ayurvedic medicine.
Pickling Salt
This salt is devoid of any sodium or any anti caking agents. It also has no trace minerals that may cause discoloration of food. Choosing which salt, you should use, really depends on your taste. Though there are trace minerals which are responsible for the exceptional properties of different types of salt, experts say all salts have almost the same amounts of sodium.
Salt in Texas
Salt is the most continuously and oldest produced mineral in Texas. The salt domes of East Texas and the Gulf Coast region are from the best known in the country. There are also huge deposits under the West and Northwest Texas plains. The Morton Salt mine in Grand Saline, East Texas is about 250 million years old and one of the largest in the world.
The town of Grand Saline has had a salt factory since 1839. During the Civil War, this factory supplied 500 pounds of salt per day to the Confederacy. It is rumored to have salt enough to last the world for 20,000 years!
This town is so proud of its salt heritage, there is an annual Salt festival that is celebrated every June. They have music acts, car shows, contests and crafts and even a beauty pageant!
If you happen to visit Texas during this time, do take a tour of the Salt Palace in Grand Saline. It is a one-story building made completely of salt bricks held together by a salt and mortar mix! Visitors can take a lick of the salt walls to get a one of a kind experience. The place is a highlight during the Salt Festival.
Final Say
One teaspoon of salt contains 2400mg of sodium. The American daily dietary guidelines recommend a maximum of 5.8 grams (2300mg) of salt which is often crossed. Used in cooking and responsible for good health, salt is essential for our wellness. The phrase âTake it with a pinch of saltâ may call for doubt, but it is no doubt that salt has seasoned the worlds history.
