Elevating Flavor Profiles With Specialty Salts

This is one of my favorite photos. Michael took it in Aruba about 5 years ago. It is actually of a 3-inch space on within the volcanic rock of the Arikok National Park (which covers about 60% of the island). The white in this photo is sun dried sea salt that was left after the water that splashed up on the surface evaporated. And yes, I tried it and it was good.

My current SaltWorks collection which includes Sea salt, Himalayan salt, Sel Gris, Flake, and Fleur de Sel

Talking about salt feels a bit like a Goldilocks situation where sometimes you read about consuming too much salt, and other times you don't have enough.

This story will not cover the health benefits (and negative effects) of salt but more about how picking the right salts can help enhance the flavor profile whatever you are cooking or the meals you are eating.

Like most of you, growing up, there was one main store-bought table salt in the house. You know, the one that says, "this salt supplies iodine, a necessary nutrient". As a side note, while probably not required as much now, there was a part of the country in the US that had illnesses related to a lack of iodine back in the 1920's which is the reason why it was added.

The Rooted & Refined Living Expert Tip: 

"Start with a clean palate. Place a few salt crystals on your tongue, close your eyes, and let the flavors melt. Notice the texture profile and complex taste. Season throughout the cooking process, then finish with a flaky salt to add depth and texture, elevating your sensory experience."

In addition to the table salt, some households like mine also had Kosher salt. That was it, just 2 salt varieties to add to your food.

Himalayan salt from SaltWorks

For years, especially when we were first married, this was the only 2 salts we had in our kitchen. At some point in time, we either bought or received as a gift, salt and pepper grinders. Using these grinders made the food taste better so we started to incorporate it more and more into our daily cooking and meals. I think we started out with sea salt and over time also started using Himalayan pink salt as well.

Nothing changed in our use of the grinders and the sea/Himalayan salts we were using for about 10-15 years. These salts became our standard way of cooking and eating but we never had a favorite or was brand loyal. The assumption was as long as we were not using the table salt, we were good.

Review Of Specialty Salts and Cooking Blocks

A few years ago, I started a quest to upgrade our salts. I started reading about finishing salts (salts that you sprinkle on your meal just before eating) which gives the food flavors an extra pop.

SaltWorks finishing salts- Sel Gris, Flake, and Fleur de Sel

After doing lots of research, I landed on the company, SaltWorks, which when I went on their website was surprised to see that I had actually used their products once before buying a salt grinder from a local retail store year's prior.

I started with buying their Sea salt and Himalayan salt and then extended my purchases to also include specialty salts, which are often called finishing salts, including Sel Gris (French grey sea salt) used for meats, Flake salt (which I use for eggs and guacamole; typically used as well for anything that calls for Kosher salt), and Fleur de Sel (which I use on caprese and cookies).

Saltverk Lava salt (great on eggs)

We have also been venturing into some other salts (it's like a whole new world of options and can be a full-time job in and of itself tasting all of the varieties and brands). However, two that have made an impact to us are Saltverk Lava salt which is hand harvested from Iceland and Maine sea salt from Slack Tide Maine (picture below). While I haven't tried it yet, I think my next purchase will be their Maine Blueberry Sea Salt as I also love Maine Blueberries (which are smaller and more flavorful than regular blueberries).

This is Michael's salt block that he uses for his smoker.

The other salt item I want to share is a salt block. This was a Christmas gift from last year that has been such a fan favorite in my household, I had to get a second one to fit all of the food we were cooking on it. If you haven't tried a salt block yet, you don't know what you are missing. It gives a great even profile and subtle flavor of salt across the entire meat or veggie you are cooking on. There is some care that needs to be taken when heating it up (slowly) and cleaning afterwards, but the food tastes incredible. We use it on our grill and cook it at the same length of time we would for anything on the grill itself.

Slack Tide Maine Flake salt

Just a point to note, when we use the salt block or the finishing salts, I use little to no sea or Himalayan salts when cooking. I don't know if there are any specific rules about using or not using it, I just find that if I use both, the salt taste is overpowering.

I hope you try some of these salt options to elevate your sensory experience with your meals.

What are some of your favorites?

Start Your Own Salt Sensory Experience

If you’re curious to start your own salt sensory experience, I’ve listed my favorite flakes below. Give one a try and let me know your thoughts in the comments!

For Transparency: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. If you purchase through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I truly love and use myself.