Often, amateur culinary specialists come to a standstill, having encountered in the recipe indicating that kosher salt is required. Not being Jews, people begin to suspect that something exotic is required, difficult to reach and possessing some kind of almost mystical properties. Searching the Internet, questioning more sophisticated cooks, almost visiting the synagogue - and all in order to find out what “kosher salt” means. At the same time, research is being conducted on how it can be replaced if it is not possible to find such an important ingredient. All these difficulties are useless: everything is much simpler than it seems at first glance.
Kosher salt: what is it and why is it called that
First of all, it is necessary to understand that the mysterious term does not imply any intricate seasoning. Under it lies the well-known NaCl, which every housewife uses. Just due to some physical and chemical features, kosher salt more quickly and efficiently carries out a process called osmosis, that is, the extraction of liquid from meat fibers. According to the rules of Jewish kashrut, eating blood is strictly prohibited. Therefore, to make the meat kosher, all blood is completely removed from it. At first, it simply merges with the carcass, after which the animal is placed in salt, which draws all the remains from it. Kosher salt got its name due to the fact that it copes with this most effectively.
By the way, in order for it to become truly kosher, all stages of its production should be carried out under the careful supervision of rabbis. If kosher salt was not purchased in a specialty store, then it is not suitable for cooking a Jewish observer. This seasoning simply corresponds to certain physical and chemical characteristics.
Visual differences
What properties made ordinary salt to be taken out in a separate subspecies? First of all, the size and shape of its crystals. Kosher salt (photo) has much larger and coarse grains of irregular shapes. Due to its larger surface area, it has the best absorbent qualities. It also provides faster solubility. Due to the size of the granules, there are also some misunderstandings: inexperienced cooks begin to believe that kosher salt is “not so salty”. In fact, in Delhi, the amount of sodium chloride in it is the same as in a regular cookery. Just crystals do not fit so tightly in a spoon, as a result of which they are sent to the soup in a smaller amount.
Composition differences
The next important point is the chemical components of salt. Additional components are added to the regular salt. Their number is strictly regulated and amounts to an insignificant mass fraction. However, they affect the taste (for a versed person). So, to prevent caking, sodium ferrocyanide is added to the fine salt, and to slow down hardening - sodium sulfur salt and calcium silicate.
The composition of iodized salt is even more intricate . Iodine is extremely necessary for the prevention of thyroid disease, which is why it is introduced into table salt. However, potassium iodide is a very unstable compound. So that it does not decompose under the influence of moisture and heat, grape sugar - dextrose is added to the seasoning.
All of these additives are completely redundant in the case of kosher salt. Due to the coarse form of the crystals, it does not cake, so it contains almost pure sodium chloride.
Cooking Application
Chefs kosher salt is appreciated for several reasons:
- Fast solubility. Thanks to her, it is difficult to salt the dish: all the salt goes into the dish almost immediately, without manifesting the break later.
- Lack of excess flavors. This is especially important where a variety of seasonings are involved, which can change their culinary “sound” under the influence of chemical additives.
- The drying properties that gave the salt a name.
Kosher salt is most in demand in meat and fish dishes, as well as in the preparation of all brines. So you can buy it at almost any supermarket. If kosher salt was not found, a dining room would be suitable as a “substitute,” but not “extra”, but rough, stone. Of course, it still has extra components in its composition, and its grains are not large enough, but it is quite suitable for home cooking.