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Salt can be the difference between a good and a great dinner. It\u2019s what you need in a pinch or by the pinch. Salt is versatile and can be a little sprinkle of amazing if you use one of the tips below. Here are 5 salt hacks to spice up your indoor and outdoor kitchen.<\/p>\n
\n- \nCoarse salt is a chef\u2019s best friend.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>Coarse salt refers to salt that has a larger grain. That\u2019s often sea salt or Kosher salt (so named because it was used in curing meats, part of the koshering process). Kosher salt has large, uneven flakes, which are ideal for soaking into the meat. Chefs love coarse salt because the large crystals make it easy to pick up, so they can season by feel. Also, it is easy to see exactly how much salt you\u2019ve used in seasoning.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
\n- \nYou need to smoke salt.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>Set your cooker of choice up to smoke (charcoal, pellet, electric). Lay a single layer of coarse salt on a cookie or sheet tray.\u00a0 Once smoke has started, place the tray in the smoker for 30 minutes.\u00a0 Keep the temperature as low as possible.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Those large, irregular crystals that we mentioned above provide a ton of surface area for the smoke resin to adhere. The salt will turn a luscious brown (that\u2019s how you know you\u2019re getting somewhere). After it\u2019s cooled, store it in an airtight container out of the sunlight. You can use the smoked salt to add a bit of pop to everything from macaroni and cheese to grilled fish to caramel sauce.<\/p>\n
\n- \nSalt is one of your best kitchen cleaners.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>Dropped an egg on the floor? Sprinkle a liberal amount of table salt on top. After 10 minutes, the salt will have absorbed a lot of the moisture in the egg and cleaning up with a paper towel will be a lot easier. You can also try this technique with wine on a carpet or rug (Blot up as much of the liquid as possible, then sprinkle on the salt. Keep in mind that some rugs may not be able to be saved from going to rug heaven).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
\n- \nYou can make your own popcorn salt.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>Your movie accompaniment can be more exciting than just butter and salt. Movie theaters use Salt flour (super fine salt) to season popcorn. For this one, you\u2019ll need your food processor (you can also use an inexpensive coffee grinder \u2013 just keep in mind that you won\u2019t want to use it for coffee again, so it will be a spice grinder for the rest of your time together).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Grind table salt in the food processor until it is super fine (about 10-15 seconds). You can use Kosher salt, you\u2019ll just need to grind it a bit longer (for the Kosher salt, do a series of pulses for several seconds at a time).<\/p>\n
\n- \nBacon salt, people. Bacon salt<\/strong>. Everybody needs a secret weapon. This could be yours in the kitchen. Bake three slices of bacon at 400 degrees for at least 12 minutes until it\u2019s evenly brown and crispy.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Grind the bacon in a food processor until it\u2019s been chopped into small granules. Then add \u00bc cup of Kosher (or sea salt) and 1\/3 teaspoon of ground black pepper. Blend the three ingredients on low until it\u2019s uniformly mixed. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer. Add it to everything from ice cream to spaghetti carbonara.<\/p>\n
Next week, we\u2019ll teach you how to make homemade margarita salt and homemade lemon pepper for fish tacos.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n