Go to the Recipe: Turn Cheap Kosher Salt Into Fancy, Flaky Salt Crystals
I'm gonna make some licorice root w/ anise salt, thinking that'll be interesting.
I saw their post on Instagram. I so glad they finally made a guide. This is so interesting.
I'm curious to know what the joule is actually sitting in and/or what are those balls in the photo?
Joule will just be in either a sink or big tub and the balls are ping pong balls to help stop the evaporation of the water
The balls help with keeping heat in and help with evaporation....i think :-)
Ping pong balls... that is cool trick. I would have never have guessed that. Thank you!
I'm going to try this with some liquid smoke added. I don't find smoked Malden sea salt very smokey (although its very delicious).
I've tried this and the flavor it too intense and "fake?". If you have a BBQ grill give it a go. About an hour with a very small amount of wood chips as to not create too much heat did the trick.
California actually did this on a much bigger scale in times of drought. They saved an enormous amount of water doing so too. https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/08/150812-shade-balls-los-angeles-California-drought-water-environment/
I tried this and the salt water turned copper colored once I poured it into the pan, and after 12 hours there was copper colored precipitate on the bottom of the pan (along with salt crystals, of course). Is this because of minerals in the tap water? Did you use purified/spring water?
since the salt is meant to be completely dissolved, is it fine to use the same amount of table salt (not kosher salt) by weight?
Table salt should work fine -- it contains very low levels of iodine, which is a halogen like chlorine and will also form crystal structures with sodium, so shouldn't interfere with the formation of large crystals. For good measure though it's probably smart to avoid salt that uses any anti-caking agents, usually aluminosilicates in this case. Check the original package, it should mention if it has any.
I'd be interested in how this infusion works, good luck.
Aluminum pans shouldn't matter, Al doesn't rust. It for a a thin oxide layer that's protective. That oxide is the same stuff your toilet bowl (and most ceramics) is made of. You want to be careful with anything steel or iron. Even stainless steel can be a problem if it's not the right kind.
Is there a sous vide technique to make the salt crystals come out of solution faster? Seems to me I read this somewhere.
hi, I have seen some recipes for cured meat using in french "gros sel" that I cannot find where I am. May I substitute it with the flaky salt crystal or "normal" salt ?
thanks
I'm doing this right now and just wanted to make a few observations for anyone else curious to try the approach:
1. It works. I don't know why I was sceptical but it's pretty amazing to see the raft of salt crystals gather on the surface and then drop, ready for scooping.
2. It takes AGES. The recipe says 24 hours, my 5l of salty water has been sitting at 40c for 72 hours right now and I've yielded 200g from my 1kg starting point. The size of container will affect the amount of evaporation, so use a wide pan to speed the priocess up (mine is 10cm wide by 20cm long
3. The salt crystrals are incredibly strong flavoured. My guess is this is just the flavour of the initial salt, but i've always used Maldon Sea Salt and these are waaaaay more salty.
4. Kids love it, my youngest in particular checks the salt raft regularly and gives me an update everytime there's some new crystals ready to fish out of the bath.
They don't stop evaporation as that cannot be stopped. What they do is provided a surface for the water to condense on and drip back into the tank. Lots of modernist sites push this but it seems a bit of a Rube Goldberg to me. Any cover will do. If you want to tech it out put a cool substance on the cover like a bag of ice. It will cause immediate condensation without the storage hassle ping pong balls ( which are not all that cheap ). I use a 250 mm computer fan and 1/2 cpvc channeled lid on my SV unit and lose no water during long hauls.
I have no idea what materials are used in the Joule but if the innerds ( the immersion heater, bearings, stators and fan ) aren't made of 316 stainless steel I would not subject them to hot concentrated salt solutions. lesser grades of 300 SS and all 400 grades will fail under such conditions.
Is there a reason to scoop out the salt flakes while still wet and slushy? Can you just let all of the water evaporate and dry up??
I am not an expert, but gros sel is evaporated sea salt that usually has other minerals in it that make it grey. This process will not add minerals back into kosher salt, so you will not get true gros sel. That said, it is the salt content that is important in cured meat, the minerals are just an extra bonus that might change the flavour slightly (if at all) and some would argue are good for you. Personally, I would skip this recipe and just use a kosher salt, Himalayan salt or Real Salt. The latter two will have some mineral content. Some gros sel is also smoked. If your recipe calls for that you will lose that flavour. You just want to avoid the iodine and anti-caking agents in table salt.
The salt you create in this recipe is good for sprinkling on top of food because of the texture and visual appeal, but if you are just going to re-dissolve the salt again, you are wasting your time.
As far as I know, it is just an inverse relationship of time and temperature. As they said in the article, a higher temperature will evaporate the water quicker so the crystals will form quicker, but will be smaller.
it will probably be one big caked piece of salt if you do that.
unless you have livestock, I would not recommend this.
The immersion circulator isn’t in the salt solution. It’s in a water bath in which trays containing the salt solution also sit.
The ball or a cover do slow evaporation by retaining a layer of 100%humidity at the surface of the water. If a slab of foam insulation were used there would be no condensation and no evaporation. Plastic wrap or ping pong balls conduct heat, so condensation occurs.
Are the trays touching the water or just sitting above the water?
Would it be possible to sub some water and use alternate liquids? i.e. wine/teas/kombucha? If so, any suggested amounts to start with?
I was thinking about making the big crystals first and putting on the Traeger smoker and cold smoke them, then you can regulate the amount of smoke.
Semi true. The oxide is sapphire, but it is not solid. It is much more brittle than the raw metal and the surface has a ton of tiny cracks. Salt water is very corrosive. You might get away with it but you might also get a lot of pitting, and that means some aluminum in your salt. Not necessarily a bad thing for the salt but not good for the pan.
Actually they do reduce evaporation because they reduce surface exposure. But they also act as an insulator. Just a cover helps but an insulating cover is better. The cheap alternative that works like a charm is the inflated pouch shipping padding that you get all the time. It covers and insulates and they don't seem to have an issue with the temps used.
Is it Possible to do this in the SUN?
I bought brand new stainless steel steamer tray inserts and two out of three had defects that were not visible until 60 minutes after the salt water was poured in. They both rusted in tiny spots and contributed a bit of iron oxide to my salt crystals. Next time I will use glass. Like others mentioned it took more like 56 hours at 110 degrees F.
Several stores around here sell sea salt in bulk pretty cheap (it's with the bulk flour, rice, lentils, etc, so definitely food grade). It's kind of grey-ish and has little black flecks in it. I'm thinking of trying this instead of the kosher salt. What does anybody think? It's my understanding that all salt is either evaporated from the sea now or is from beds of salt that evaporated from the sea in ancient, usually REALLY ancient times.
You could also buy large salt crystals from mines and then dissolve them and crystallize them into flakes like this. I don't know how cost efficient that would be.
Hey, interested read. I'm wondering if there is an actual difference between . . let's say Maldon flakey salts vs. regular grocery store kosher in terms of flavour profile, or any actual notable difference in performance; or is it just for looks?
What would happen if I add some maple syrup as flavor ? Would that stop or ruin the flakes ? :-)
Hoping to see if this is a good way to make something like one of Adam Perry Lang's finishing salts... specifically zinfandel salt. Worth a go, and worst that happens is I blow a <$15 bottle of zin.
You're looking for the flavor, not the price. Don't waste a $15 bottle of fancy wine on a tub of salt. Get the cheapest Zin you can.
Probably make a real mess. Remember, syrup is liquid sugar. If you've made rock candy, you know what large sugar crystals look like. I doubt you would get anything resembling flake salt.
There could be some regional "taste" imparted to Maldon salt, compared to Diamond or Morton Kosher salt. Importantly, these salts are not "iodized". As the article above indicates, however, salt is salt, and what you're doing is recrystalizing ordinary Kosher salt into flakey crystals. All salt starts out as a solution and the liquid is evaporated in large ponds. Table salt is generally made from "mined" crystal salt, put back into solution to (a) add iodine and remove impurities and then (b) reevaporated into tiny crystals. Flake salt is mostly for show -- i.e., a "finishing salt" -- that would be better, for example, on pretzels than the large salt crystals you usually get. Same salt taste, but actually crunchy mouth feel. It's also excellent for sous vide cooking because you tend to use less, so your food gets the right salt flavor without being overly salted (and you never want to use iodized salt in sous vide).
The pans were obviously not the proper grade of stainless steel. "304" stainless steel pans will not do this nor will "18/10" stainless steel utensils. You probably bought cheap Chinese or Indian stainless steel, instead of quality items from a company such as Vollrath, which are made in the USA. "Unbranded" pans should be avoided, but even some of the better import brands, such as Alegacy, Winco, or others, occasionally come from inferior sources.
The pans in the photo are IN the water so that they are constantly tempered.
What kind of "aluminum" pans are you talking about? Aluminum may not rust, but it is particularly susceptible to corrosion in acidic environments. NaCl is a "neutral" salt - pH 7.0, which is sufficient to start the corrosive process in an aluminum pan. Ask any other chef, and he/she will tell you that salty liquids will pit even the most expensive commercial aluminum stock pots, and thinner walled pot and frying pans. You may get lucky the first time or two.
Ping pong balls? LOL! Ping pong balls are hollow and would float on the surface. Those balls are filled with water and are used to displace and equal volume of liquid.
Trying this for the 1st time. Does anyone know if they made a video on making this?
Vollrath is often made in India. Country of origin isn't always a great predictor of quality
I would like to make espresso flaked salt. I understand that adding liquids will further prolong the process. I am wondering if cryomilling the espresso to a super fine powder will allow me to mix it directly into the salt solution, or no. Any idea?
Try it in small batches and see what happens
Use espresso instead of some or all of the water
Why not make espresso with the water in the recipe
Why don't you want to use iodized salt in sous vide?
Iodized salt contains iodine which imparts a coppery metallic taste to food. Non-iodized salt has a cleaner taste.
What are the white balls in the bottom pan?
As a matter of fact even stainless steel 304 may develop tiny corrosion spots with heated salt water. 316L is the most suitable stainless steel for such harsh conditions.
They are sitting on top of the water bath to help prevent the bath from evaporating while we evaporate the salty water.
Absolutely! Watch for rain and maybe use some netting to keep out bugs.
Sounds like an explosion of intense flavors. I’d love to hear how it turns out. If you’re experimenting, I wonder what a little sugar mixed into the finished product would do for it.
Granulate the syrup first and then add to the finished salt flakes.
Not only does it em part a different flavor profile, but anything dissolved in the salt solutions, whether ionic or semi-ionic (salts and metals vs some sugars, alcohols, etc.), will somewhat change crystallization due to the solubility quotient of each. I believe a better technique would be to make crystals of what you want to add flavor with and mix as two dry ingredients or look for the dry ingredients already available to purchase.
You say the white balls are to prevent the bath from evaporating but what are they?
Sous Vide Cooking Balls
They’re sous vide cooking balls to prevent water evaporation while cooking.
Can I do the same with sea water? Should I concentrate them before ? if yes how much?
Sea water is salty enough and no need to concentrate. It will work just make sure you boil the water and filter.
Has anyone tried this with black salt such as the types that come from Hawaii?
I don't see from the pictures how this sets up. I see balls under the trays not floating. Also the falling salt looks like it would fall everywhere, not just in the two pans. Lastly, if the bath is salt, won't thus ruin my joul with a constant cycle through of salt water? Can I see a video?
It looks like the the salt is just in the aluminum containers sitting in the joule bath. The salt & water does not make contact with the joule. Think of it as a fancy bain marie.
What kind of filter is best? A Britta-type filter or something else?
