547049 Sat Aug 09 09:42:52 -0700 2008 23 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 3943189 I bought a salt mill a few weeks ago, sort of on impulse. My husband had said he wanted one, and I saw it on sale at Bed, Bath, Beyond, so . . . Well, now the salt is getting low, so I've started looking for something with which to replenish it. I've found all sorts of interesting stuff (pink Himalayan salt, red salt, Pacific salt, Brazilian salt, etc.,etc.) which I'm sure would be lovely, but is there a more pedestrian alternative?? I doubt that the salt mill I bought for under $10 at BBB contained anything so exotic--or expensive! Any suggestions (and where to buy them) appreciated. Sat Aug 09 09:43:05 -0700 2008 12677 phoebek 1 3944022 Coarse sea salt. Not the flaky kinds you'd use for sprinkling, but just large crystals of sea salt, which you can buy at lots of supermarkets in canisters for not a lot of money. Sat Aug 09 19:22:06 -0700 2008 3943189 10074 Caitlin McGrath 2 3945632 Thanks, I'll look for that at a "regular" supermarket. I've only looked at Whole Foods so far, and their selection was (predictably) expensive. Sun Aug 10 17:14:32 -0700 2008 3944022 12677 phoebek 3 3945665 Even Whole Foods probably carries the Baleine brand or something comparable...look for it lower on the shelves, with the other unfancy sorts. Sun Aug 10 17:34:03 -0700 2008 3945632 10074 Caitlin McGrath 4 3946688 I already have a container of coarse Baleine "sel de mer gros," but it's much finer than the crystals in the salt mill. I looked at Baleine's website, and though my French isn't very good, it didn't look as if they have anything coarser. Mon Aug 11 07:48:24 -0700 2008 3945665 12677 phoebek 2 3945881 Have been using milled sea salt for a while (parents bought me a pre-filled sea salt mill from Costco), and agree w/the rec. Sun Aug 10 19:26:29 -0700 2008 3944022 10216 Lucia 1 3945870 use the 'cleanest' possible Kosher salt . period . Sun Aug 10 19:21:51 -0700 2008 3943189 34684 the.crump 2 3969112 Kosher salt is much too fine to grind in a mill. Plus that takes away a great deal ofthe attraction of a salt mill. A salt mill needs to be filled with a very coarse salt. Generally you can only find sea salt that coarse. Tue Aug 19 09:47:08 -0700 2008 3945870 43893 C. Hamster 3 3969115 You don't think that coarse kosher salt could be ground in the mill? I only use it for making gravlax and cleaning cast iron, but it seems pretty coarse to me. But maybe not as hard as sea salt? Tue Aug 19 09:49:46 -0700 2008 3969112 10985 MMRuth 4 3969285 IMO it would be like putting coarsley ground pepper into a pepper mill instead of peppercorns. Unlike a pepper mill which enables you to have freshly ground pepper, a salt mill itself does nothing to improve the quality of the salt. So the point of a salt mill is (1) filed with chunky salt, it looks cool; (2) filled with good quality chunky salt, like interesting sea salt, it looks cool and dispenses an interesting and tasty product. Filling it with kosher salt -- you get neither 1 nor 2. BTW, why don't you use kosher salt for other uses? Tue Aug 19 10:38:38 -0700 2008 3969115 43893 C. Hamster 5 3969313 Oh - I do use it for other uses, but use the fine grain kind. Don't even have "regular" salt, though I probably should, since I'm never quite sure about substitutions when baking - I just add a little more kosher salt. P.S. I don't have a salt mill, so not contributing to that part of the conversation. All the salt I buy is already quite fine. With Maldon salt, sometimes I'll rub it between my fingers to break it down a bit. Tue Aug 19 10:44:57 -0700 2008 3969285 10985 MMRuth 6 3969393 I can't recall seeing a "fine" grain kosher salt in the supermarket. What brand do you use? If you are using fine grain kosher salt you probably don't have to adjust recipes and use more. The 2:1 or 3:2 ratio of kosher to table salt (depends on brand you use) are based on coarse grain kosher salt. Because it is coarser than fine-grind table salt, you need to use more. If you are already using a fine grind kosher salt, then you probably should stick to 1:1 ratio. I don't have a salt mill either. I use kosher salt in a salt cellar and various sea salts for finishing dispensed in generally random manners. Tue Aug 19 11:12:17 -0700 2008 3969313 43893 C. Hamster 7 3969454 This is what I use: http://www.diamondcrystalsalt.com/Culinary/Products/Kosher-Salt.aspx I notice it refers to the texture as being coarse, but it seems quite fine to me. Tue Aug 19 11:30:48 -0700 2008 3969393 10985 MMRuth 8 3969532 That's Diamond Crystal, which i use as well. It is considered coarse salt, actually. Coarser even than Morton's kosher salt, thus accounting for the substitution ratio differences. A "fine" grain is more like table salt. You can find sea salt ground fine in supermarkets but not kosher. Kosher salt is coarsely flaked becasue it's original use was in the process of koshering meats. As far as I know, kosher salt comes in basically one grind, so I am curious as to what you are scrubbing your CI with .... Tue Aug 19 11:49:19 -0700 2008 3969454 43893 C. Hamster 9 3969541 Ha - now I am too - I don't have any of the coarse one now, but next time I have both, I'll post a photo! Tue Aug 19 11:51:22 -0700 2008 3969532 10985 MMRuth 10 3969552 :-) I would be interested to see how much different they are -- and what brand names! Tue Aug 19 11:54:09 -0700 2008 3969541 43893 C. Hamster 5 4083018 you get neither 1 nor 2. Nice. Concise. Sun Oct 05 09:32:22 -0700 2008 3969285 10743 yayadave 1 3945975 Very general rule-of-thumb: if you are cooking with it, then a good kosher, or sea-salt is where you'll probably want to go. However, if you are adding it to your food, then the various "gourmet salts," come into play. We keep a half-dozen salt-mills, and use them, depending on what we're doing with the salt. I love the various flavored-salts, but only on food, once cooked. It depends on where, in the prep, the salt is applied. Hunt Sun Aug 10 20:08:54 -0700 2008 3943189 11329 Bill Hunt 1 3961942 If you have a Trader Joe's near you, they carry a TJ's brand coarse sea salt. It's kind of a greyish color and has large crystals that work great in a grinder. Sat Aug 16 06:56:57 -0700 2008 3943189 12947 gmm 2 3966794 Thanks, gmm. I was planning a trip to TJ's within the next week or so, so I'll look for it. Mon Aug 18 13:19:20 -0700 2008 3961942 12677 phoebek 3 3967236 I caution you against using the TJ brand. I bought it to put in my salt mill, but it was sticky and did not grind well at all. Maybe gmm lucked out. I'm a big fan of Hawaiian Alaea salt, which is not cheap (about $8/8oz here in NYC), but is worth the cost, in my opinion. Mon Aug 18 15:51:08 -0700 2008 3966794 13722 small h 2 4082997 The TJ salts tend to be Sel Gris, or gray salt. They have irregular granular crystals that harbor varying amounts of residual moisture, making them an almost sure-fire bet to gum up the works in your grinder, making it jam within minutes. You need a specialty grey salt grinder such as the Vendome Guerande style mills made by Peugeot for Sel Gris. You need to use a rock salt such as Tidman's, Alaea Volcanic Coarse, Himalayan Salt, Brazilian sal grosso, etc. There is no point in using something cheap--spending an extra couple bucks will give you greater pleasure for months. Sun Oct 05 09:22:27 -0700 2008 3961942 122215 selmelier 1 3966871 Hi phoebek, I am an avid "collector" of salt, and I literally own like 40, 50 kinds of salts in different textures and from different origins (by country and by region). Logically I also have a lot of salt containers, salt shakers, and salt mills. One thing that I like to use my salt mills for is to maked my own blended salt. Just buy coarse salt and spices that you like (of course the whole version, not ground). My favorites are my anise seeds + salt or my fennel seeds + salt. They are great on pizza, pasta, or butter! Mon Aug 18 13:43:53 -0700 2008 3943189 54254 kobetobiko 1 4082981 If you are looking for the most classic salt for a grinder, something clean and delicately sweet, buy Tidman's Rock salt. It is white, slightly buttery, and is a perfect complement to just about everything. The funny thing about Tidman's is that it is super inexpensive, and also one of the nicest grinding salts imaginable. You can find it at our shop, www.atthemeadow.com. Sun Oct 05 09:15:49 -0700 2008 3943189 122215 selmelier