Gourmet salts come in an intriguing mix of colors and textures from all corners of the world — the Himalayas to Hawaii. Not surprisingly, they also come with all manner of health claims attached. These pale pink, smoky grey and black salt crystals are said to be inherently more healthful because there’s less processing and so they contain more minerals than regular table salt — and then, depending on where the salt is mined, there are promises linked to the particular provenance. For example, there are salts with clay, sulfur, charcoal — ingredients that may sprinkle more nutrients and exotic taste into your foods… even if they don’t sound all that delicious.
Ordinary salt — the cheap kind that you buy in cardboard canisters at the supermarket — comes from vast underground salt deposits. The salt crystals are processed and refined until all that remains are the two elements sodium and chloride, to which a small amount of magnesium is added to keep the salt from caking. Iodine is also added to iodized salt. At the supermarket, you also can buy kosher salt (processed the same way but finished in larger crystals) and sea salt (from evaporated seawater), which contains minute traces of other minerals.
Let’s meet the salts…
Himalayan Pink Sea Salt, taken from salt deposits in the Himalayan mountains, has a lovely blush-pink color. It is said to contain 84 trace elements (minerals) plus iron. It has a sweet but mild aftertaste and is a good finishing salt (to be sprinkled on food just before serving) for all kinds of dishes — surprisingly, even ice cream. Typical price:$4 per pound.
Bolivian Rose Salt is hand-harvested from ancient sea salt deposits in the Andes Mountains. This mountain range was once covered with lava from volcanoes, which imbues this salt with traces of calcium, potassium and iron (that accounts for its rose color). It has a rich, intense flavor, and I think it is the prettiest of all the salts, with sunset hues (light rose and orange) that make it uniquely beautiful in a clear salt shaker. Devotees like it on poultry, fish, meat, vegetables and especially on fresh citrus fruits — it’s particularly great for rimming the glass of strawberry margaritas! Typical price:$13 per pound.
Alaea Hawaiian Sea Salt is tinged ruddy red. The color comes from iron-rich Hawaiian red clay, which gives the salt a subtle flavor that has been described as “mellow” and “earthy.” This salt is imbued with an additional 80 seawater minerals. Alaea salt is used in ancient Hawaiian healing rituals and blessing ceremonies (such as for homes and canoes) that are still practiced today. It is the standard table salt in Hawaii and is used for traditional Hawaiian dishes, such as Kalua Pig and Hawaiian Jerky. It’s also delicious on just about all meats — chefs recommend mixing this coarse salt with various herbs to create a spice rub that seals in a meat’s natural juices. Typical price:$9 per pound.
Flake Salt is made by letting the sun and wind naturally evaporate seawater to create snowflake-shaped salt crystals, resulting in a product that is light and flaky. Flake salt has a tendency to sit right on top of food, adding an appealing sparkle, especially pretty since certain varieties (such as Halen Mon, the Welsh sea salt from Anglesey, Wales) are known for their very bright white color. Flake salt contains trace elements of zinc, calcium and magnesium, and it has a mild, light and zingy taste. It’s often used as a garnish for raw vegetable dishes and salads, as well as for fish, tomatoes, pasta, hors d’oeuvres and even fruit. Typical price:$21 per pound.
Cyprus Black Lava Flake Salt is a Mediterranean sea salt with added activated charcoal, which gives this salt its unusual black color and a sharp, smoky taste. Because charcoal is known to absorb toxins, this salt is sometimes claimed to be a detoxifier. It’s excellent on fish, vegetables, salad and pasta, and the deep color makes it a gorgeous garnish. Typical price:$26 per pound.
Hiwa Kai Salt is a black version of Hawaiian sea salt — it is Pacific sea salt combined with activated charcoal. It has a silky texture, a smoky taste and is especially good on salads, sushi and soups. Typical price:$5.50 per pound.
Grey Salt (also known as Sel Gris) is a moist salt that is harvested from ponds on the Atlantic coast of the Brittany region of France using traditional Celtic methods. Its unusual tint — grey verging on lavender — comes from the mineral-rich clay found in this part of France. It tastes like a slightly fuller and richer version of regular salt and (like many gourmet salts) is available in a variety of grinds. Sel Gris coarse grain is used in pinches, for finishing dishes just before serving… the stone-ground fine grain is used at the table like regular salt… and the extra fine (or “velvet”) grain is typically used to sprinkle over popcorn or nuts. Typical cost:$9 per pound.
Smoked Sea Salt is smoked (naturally) over wood fires, a process that infuses the crystals with a smoky flavor, making it a delicious choice for roasts, chicken, salads and sandwiches and most particularly salmon. Smoked sea salt is available in a range of flavors, including hickory, mesquite, alder and other hardwoods. The grains are large, coarse and dark, in multihued shades ranging in color from browns to dark grays. Typical cost:$28 per pound.
Black Salt (also known as Kala Namak and Sanchal). This is an odd name for a salt that is more accurately described as pinkish-grey than black. It is an unrefined mineral salt and has a strong sulfur flavor reminiscent of hard-boiled eggs. It comes in both coarse grain and very fine grain and is often used in authentic Indian cooking. Typical cost:$21 per pound.
You’re hungry now, aren’t you?
But before you reach for the salt, let me tell you about a conversation I had with one of our favorite nutrition experts, Suzanne Havala Hobbs, DrPH, MS, RD, clinical associate professor in the department of health policy and management and the department of nutrition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. I called her to ask whether these intriguing salts are really any better — or worse, for that matter — for us than table salt. Her response was that there’s a pinch of truth to the health claims — but just a pinch.
According to Hobbs, unprocessed salts contain more of the valuable minerals that are removed from common table salt — but in very small quantities. So small, in fact, that there isn’t enough of anything in these salts to make an appreciable difference to anyone’s health. She said that it is important to note that, along with all their trace minerals, gourmet salts still contain lots of sodium. As a result, they may raise blood pressure and cause inflammation in vulnerable populations — and that’s true no matter where they come from. “All of these salts are basically still almost entirely sodium chloride,” Hobbs noted. “They contain essentially the same amount of sodium as regular table salt — and that’s a health issue for some people.”
So what’s the bottom line? Enjoy the gourmet salts for their flavor, their exotic colors, and their unusual shapes and textures. But enjoy them sparingly — just as with regular table salt.
