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Pickling Salt vs Kosher Salt – What’s Really Different?

Salt is the most important ingredient in cooking. Salt is not just one type. In fact, there are many different types of salt to choose from. Different salts have different flavors and textures. They are also distinguished from each other by their mineral and sodium content. In this article, let’s learn about pickling salt vs kosher salt with Battersby.

Kosher salt

Kosher salt is one of the most commonly used salts in the kitchen today. This type of salt can give great flavor to dishes. Kosher salt has a much larger particle size than regular salt.

Kosher Salt is a famous type of salt. It has the ability to make food so much tastier. It has moderate salinity. Therefore, it seems rare that any salt can replace this salt.

Kosher salt is less refined than refined salt. The crystal shape of Kosher salt is usually coarse, large, and not smooth.

Professional chefs often love to use Kosher salt. Thanks to the use of this salt, they can easily adjust the saltiness of the dishes.

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Kosher salt is one of the most commonly used salts in the kitchen today 

1. The origin of its name

Kosher foods are foods and beverages that comply with Jewish dietary laws. However, that is not the reason for the name of Kosher salt.

In fact, the original purpose of this salt was to remove the blood from the meat. Hence, the correct name of this salt should be “Koshering”. However, many companies have labelled “Kosher” instead of “Koshering” for their products.

2. How to make Kosher salt

People usually harvest salt from seawater or salt mines. To produce salt, they had to completely evaporate the water from the seawater. The crystals that remain after the evaporation process are salt crystals. Then, people will process the salt crystals in different ways to create different types of salt. 

Kosher salt is also derived from salt crystals. In fact, Kosher salt is not usually iodized. However, for some brands, their Kosher salt products may contain anti-caking agents.

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The original purpose of this salt was to remove the blood from the meat

3. Substitute for Kosher salt

Kosher salt is not always available in your kitchen. Therefore, sometimes you need to consider a kosher salt substitute. In theory, we often determine the amount of seasoning for a dish by weight. However, it is not always possible to measure the weight of such small amounts of spices. This is almost impractical.

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Kosher salt is not always available in your kitchen. Hence, sometimes you need to consider kosher salt substitutes

Different salts have different crystal sizes. Therefore, the amount of salt needed for the dish also varies between types of salt. Here is a simple dosing formula for you. It will come in handy once you have used up all the Kosher salt:

1 teaspoon table salt = 1.5 teaspoons Kosher salt = 2 teaspoons diamond crystal Kosher salt

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4. Some suggestions for how to use Kosher salt

Kosher salt goes well with many dishes. It is especially suitable for seasoning white meats such as chicken and pork. This salt is also a great choice for dishes that specify “coarse salt”. Kosher salt is one of the great seasonings for desserts as well as salads.

However, this  salt does not seem to be suitable for baking.

Pickling salt

Pickling salt is also called canning salt. Although all salts are suitable for the pickling process, Pickling salt is the best choice. So, what’s so special about pickling salt?

Pickling salt (canning salt or preserving salt) is the purest form of salt. Pickling salt is not iodized. It also does not contain anti-caking agents. Pickling salt has very small and fine salt crystals. Therefore, this salt is easily soluble in water.

Clumping may occur if you expose the pickling salt to the air for a long time. Therefore, you need to keep pickling salt in an airtight box.

When it comes to pickling salt, Morton and Ball are the two most popular brands at convenience stores.

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Pickling salt (canning salt or preserving salt) is the purest form of salt 

1. The role of pickling salt

Pickling salt has fine grain and no additives. It is also very easily soluble in water. Therefore, it is very suitable for the pickling process.

2. Substitute for pickling salt

Canning salt is the best choice for the pickling process. However, that does not mean it does not have alternatives.

In fact, you can also use Kosher salt for the pickling process. However, you need to make sure it does not contain any additives. Pure sea salt is also a great substitute for pickling salt in the pickling process.

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Pickling salt is the best choice for the pickling process. However, that does not mean it does not have alternatives 

You can also use table salt as a pickling salt substitute for the pickling process. However, this is not recommended. Additives in table salt can adversely affect the quality of your produce.

When using an alternative for pickling salt, you need to remember the following quantification recipe:

1,5 cups of flaked kosher salt = 1 cup of pickling salt( canning salt) = 1,5 cups of table salt

For fermented pickles, you should apply the following recipe:

220 grams flaked salt = 1 of cup canning salt

What is the difference between pickling salt vs kosher salt

In general, like all salts, both pickle and kosher salt help to give a dish a salty taste. What’s more, both can make the dish even better.

In fact, they are interchangeable in some cases. However, that does not mean they are exactly the same.

  • What is the difference between pickling salt and Kosher salt?

The biggest difference between pickling salt and Kosher salt is their salt crystal size. In fact, the pickling salt crystals are small, uniform and smooth. Meanwhile, Kosher salt crystals are larger in size.

Pickle salt and kosher salt both have special uses. Canning salt is a great choice for the pickling process. It is not iodized and contains anti-caking agents. Therefore, it does not cloud the brine or discolor the pickles. 

The pickling salt crystals are small in size. Hence, it can dissolve easily in water. The original use of Kosher salt was to remove blood from meat (Koshering). However, you can use it for any dish.

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  • Are pickling salt and Kosher salt interchangeable?

Like Kosher salt, pickling salt contains no additives. That’s why you can use Kosher for the pickling process. Pickling salt is the best choice. Kosher salt is the best alternative to pickling salt.

You can use canning salt to replace Kosher salt in some dishes. In fact, canning salt is especially effective for dishes like french fries. The smoothness of canning salt is perfect for sticking to surfaces.

The size of the salt crystals has a huge effect on how you use these two salts. Since kosher salt crystals are larger than pickling salts, you need to make some adjustments to the recipe. 

Specifically, if you use kosher salt as a canning salt substitute in the pickling process, you must use 50% more.

What if we use other salts for the pickling process?

1. Table salt

Unlike pickling salt, table salt contains anti-caking agents. That’s why it can make the liquid cloudy. This does not make the pickles taste bad. But it can make the pickles aesthetically ugly. Therefore, table salt is not recommended for the pickling process.

pickling salt vs kosher salt

 Table salt is not recommended for the pickling process 

2. Sea salt 

Sea salt contains no additives. However, it is also not the right choice for the pickling process. The reason is that sea salt has a very different crystal size than pickling salt.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can I use coarse sea salt as a Kosher salt substitute?

Coarse sea salt has large crystals, like Kosher salt. So it’s no surprise that they have something in common. Specifically, the taste of coarse sea salt and Kosher salt seems similar. The processing of coarse sea salt is mainly by evaporation. It is also non-iodized and contains anti-caking agents.

Since coarse sea salt and Kosher salt have different crystal sizes, you need to make slight adjustments in the recipe: 1 teaspoon of coarse sea salt = 1, 25 teaspoons of kosher salt

2. Can Himalayan pink salt replace Kosher salt?

The short answer is yes. If you are looking for the best alternative to Kosher salt, Himalayan pink salt is a great choice. In fact, both of these salts have roughly the same crystal size.

This salt not only makes the dish great, but it also helps the color of the dish to be perfect. 

Conclusion

Hopefully, through this article, you have a better understanding of pickling salt vs kosher salt. Each type of salt has its own advantages. Please use it wisely!

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