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Specialty salts are now mainstream

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January 11, 2012|By Jeremy D. Goodwin

The burgeoning interest in specialty salts has brought many options to the discerning shopper. Niche salts have gone from the obscure to the mainstream - even Trader Joe’s has carried a store-branded Himalayan salt. When choosing salt, taste it first and look at nutritional content, though the story behind each salt’s origin is a selling point for some.

Maldon Sea Salt is harvested on the south coast of England, and comes in flakes rather than crystals. Maldon is a family-owned business, currently on its fourth generation of salt-makers. The company says the salt business in its region dates to the days of Roman occupation.

Naturally evaporated white sea salt from the south of France, La Baleine also boasts a pedigree going back to the Romans. It comes from the salt works at the medieval city of Aigues-Mortes, or “dead waters.’’ This is one of the most popular French sea salts.

Redmond Real Salt is culled from a salt deposit left by an ancient ocean in central Utah. It has a similar mineral makeup and pink hue as Himalayan salt, though it tends to be sweeter.

Named for the reddish clay that lends the salt its color and iron, Alaea Hawaiian Sea Salt is a popular choice for buyers looking for healthful properties. “It’s the Himalayan and Hawaiian salts that are pretty much going head to head for the health title, because of the trace minerals,’’ according to Abraham Nabors, assistant manager at Mustard Seed markets in Ohio.

Culled off the Gulf of Maine and naturally evaporated by the sun in specially fashioned greenhouses, Maine Sea Salt comes in plain, smoked (particularly suitable for marinades), and flavored (such as lemon and dulse seaweed) versions. J.G.