My mom got this for me 🫶🏻
I intended to use this to dry brine and season my meats, but from what I gather online it’s used mainly as a finishing salt, correct me if I’m wrong, and if I can use this like I wanted too.
Also, tell me your favorite salts to use for dry brining and seasoning foods! Thanks in advance
by stripes177
23 Comments
You could use it in a brine, but it probably won’t add much compared to any other salt. It’ll be better as a finishing salt.
For the most part salt is salt. The only thing you need to be weary of is the size of the salt crystals which will impact if you’re measuring. I have a finishing salt that are flakes that wouldn’t just use as my regular salt because it cost substantialy more.
Yeah I wouldn’t waste that in a brine. Salt is salt, sure, but texture impacts food in ways we don’t always immediately appreciate and this salt is fun and flaky. Finish stuff with it for a while, figure out what it does and if it doesn’t impress you by Thanksgiving you can have the fanciest turkey brine ever
You CAN use it to brine, but it would be a complete waste!!
Best to buy cheap salt for brine & use this as a finishing salt!
Flakes are big and better to finish with
Ehhh if i was hosting thanksgiving turkey or Christmas prime rib and wanted to say I’d used something fancy I’d totally brine with this, and no I wouldn’t expect it to taste better, more so just bragging points with my brother and to annoy my wife with my stupidity of using all of the expensive salt. Otherwise any other day I’d call it a waste, so mix (or top) this into some unsalted butter to use on bread or use it for a general finishing salt, since you have so much maybe use it to season steaks and burgers when you want to be fancy, eat it on garden fresh tomatoes, or better tomato sandwich…simplicity is your friend.
It’s salt. It’s NaCl. Use it as you wish, for whatever purpose.
I only use this as finishing salt. But yes, you can use it as you want. But it’s probably better to just buy a large box of kosher salt and use that for brining instead.
As others have said, using this to brine would be a waste. Salt is salt, but fleur de sal is used as a finishing salt because it has larger flakes which can give them a bit of texture when applied right before serving (ie a slight crunch)
Regular salt is CHEAP and if you grab kosher salt the smaller grain size will actually help the dry brining process go faster & penetrate deeper. That’s my go-to whenever I’m brining something.
Skip using this as a brine, it will not *improve* your dry brine (and may actually be just slightly worse than kosher salt) and save it for the end.
It’s expensive to use as a dry brine. The reason it’s used as a finishing salt is because it’s pretty and gives nice little crunchy salty bites.
The faster you dry salt, the smaller the crystals.
What you have is a very fancy salt, dried slowly, and expensive compared to other salt.
It’s like getting the nicest artisan bread you could find, and then making bread crumbs with it, to then just put in meat balls.
It’s like buying a heritage turkey, just to grind it up and make nuggets
It’s like finding a nice cut of wagyu, just to make a burger with it
Salt is salt, and IMO fancy salt is mostly a waste of money. There’s some salts that do have distinctive flavour (generally I’d categorize as table salt, sea salt, and minerally salt).
Beyond that you’re looking at how big the pieces of salt are – Small pieces dissolve into food quickly, larger pieces more slowly.
TL;DR: Yeah use it for whatever you want. Fleur is generally regarded as a finishing salt, but that really doesn’t matter much. It still tastes fundamentally like salt. It’ll work for brining. You’d NEVER buy fancy salt for brining (or at all, if you’re like me, because salt is salt) simply because it’s way more expensive for essentially the same product. Unless you’re super into saltbae’ing your steak in front of guests or some other foolishness, it’s gonna taste the exact same as using normal salt.
You can interchange any salt just be aware of the salt density. One tablespoon of granular salt is alot more than one tablespoon of coarse or finishing salt
Everyone is telling you that salt is salt, which is true in your case, but it’s important to note that curing salts with preservative additives are not just salt. This is not a curing salt so that doesn’t apply, but take note for the future.
What you have there is no different than the Morton’s Kosher or Diamond Crystal that is in most kitchens. If you’re measuring by weight, it’s completely interchangeable with any other standard salt. If you’re measuring by volume you’re going to run into issues as you’ll have much more air in that salt.
If you’re weighing it in the recipe, all table salt is interchangeable. I usually use Diamond Crystal because I always have it on hand. If I know I’m going to need a lot, I buy Amorcito CorazĂłn Sal de Mar for about half the price. You’re right about the Fleur de Sel. I would use that as a finishing salt.
I swear by Diamond Kosher Salt for brine & seasoning. I felt Morton’s was too salty
You truly should save that salt for finishing. If you’re gonna waste salt dry brining, waste cheap salt.
Use cheap salt, I like pink Himalayan. It’s not as cheap as table salt but I buy big bulk bags for salt grinders for about $10/KG.
I’d save this salt as a nice sprinkling on top of the steak or meat once you serve them on the plate.
Am i missing something does the salt you use change the flavor? Isnt salt just salt?
Use the cheapest NaCl for brine. Save this as a finishing salt for the unique texture and the slight taste differences.
I’m flabbergasted when I see people pay exorbitant amounts of money on “fancy” salt. It’s a friggin cheap and abundant mineral! Sure, there are different processing textures, sometimes slight aroma or color differences depending on where it was harvested or processed but it’s still just salt. You’re paying for the package more than for the product.
Here’s the thing. Everyone has an opinion on what they think is best, and they are not wrong necessarily based on their experiences. If you want to dry brine with it, is say your not out anything by trying it once. I have completely switched to using sea salt for all my home adventures with meat and I’ve never turned back. Now granted I buy my salt in bulk to off set the cost.
It really comes down to what do you hope to gain by switching to a more mineralized salt.
Folks saying “salt is salt” are incorrect and have no idea what they’re talking about. All salts are not equal. Salt can be sodium chloride, some salts can be potassium chloride. There’s a wide variety of salts available and not all are alike.
I highly recommend using Diamond Crystal Kosher. It’s made using a very different process than normal table salt that ultimately enhances flavor while keeping the salt-forward/chemical taste down. There’s a reason why it’s the number one brand across US steakhouses. It’ll be a bit more expensive than iodized table salt, but will enhance the flavor of a beef steak like no other.
Other premium salts (like sea salts) will work, but they aren’t scientifically formulated to enhance food that you eat. And, at times, they contain other minerals that may or may not impact the flavors of the dish you’re creating.