The Smoking Kitchen

Salt: Not just for throwing in the eyes of your enemies

From time to time I come across a piece of information that greatly improves my knowledge of food and cooking. For example, I recently learned that I’d been grabbing my knives incorrectly.

I can’t tell you how much more I’ve enjoyed cooking since making this discovery, although I still run a risk of disfigurement due to my knife drawer.

Anyhow, I recently came across a tiny but brilliant piece of information regarding salt. In past posts, I’ve hypothesized that adding salt helps improve flavor, independent of extra saltiness. What I said specifically in my post, Tofu with Thai Curry Sauce, was

“…salt has some sort of hocus pocus in it that amplifies flavor.”

Well, The Kitchn posted a more scientific answer in an article about the term “salt to taste.” What they specifically said in their post was

“As an ingredient in dishes, salt plays two important roles. First, it reduces bitterness. Second, because it reduces bitterness, adding salt allows the aromas and tastes of the other ingredients in your dish to shine through.”

Well, I’ll be.

While I’m on the subject, The Kitchn is a great site. A friend from college recently recommended it after reading my blog, I guess to provide a countermeasure against my kitchen halfass-ery (it does). Initially, I had a negative reaction because it’s intensely yuppyish and because I don’t trust things as shiny as this website. However, it’s a little disingenuous to rail against yuppies when I have a blog about cooking. Also, how long can I look at something shiny before I start clapping my hands? I’m only human.

So check out www.thekitchn.com and enjoy the useful cooking tips while letting the soft hues and crisp photography massage the part of your brain that makes you want to buy stuff.