Spice news

Salts and seasonings

Flavoured salts, rubs, finishing seasonings and the shakers of the table.

A pile: the spice ground to powder, here with a spoon. Ground spice loses its aroma faster than whole.

Salt seasonings combine salt with spices or herbs, or are flavoured salts and sugars used at the table. Celery salt, Old Bay, Svan salt, furikake and masala salts are examples.

What they are

Salt carries flavour and also preserves food. Seasoning salts add garlic, celery seed, chilli or herbs to the salt, and some, such as Svan salt from Georgia, are regional tradition. Others, such as black salt, called kala namak, are mineral salts with a sulphur scent.

How they are used

They are sprinkled on food while cooking or at the table, on chips, eggs, fruit, popcorn, grilled meat and rim glasses. Chaat masala and some other mixes contain black salt for a sulphurous tang.

Buying and keeping

Check the salt content, as seasoned salts can be salty. Keep in dry, closed containers, since salt takes up moisture from the air. Mixes with fresh herbs should be stored cool.

Seasoning on EveryMasala

The spices written up so far, best known first.

The weekly digest

Every Monday: seven spices you may not know, what is cooking this week, and one blend explained step by step.