What is the point of roasting salt?
This recipe for ginger-garlic paste roasts the salt before putting it in the paste. Now, I never thought I've seen someone roasting salt before. What is the point of this? How does it change the flavor or properties of the salt?
Best Answer
The recipe calls for heating a "pan" on medium heat. Without knowing what type of pan this is, there is no way of knowing what reaction is going on there. Let me venture a guess, though.
I guess the pan is cast or mineral, seasoned, iron. The salt will react with some of the compounds from the bottom of the pan, making it "change its color".
Other types of pans will, most likely, do nothing. Non-stick, steel, aluminum don't react with salt.
As to the function of browning the salt, I can only guess that the flavor changes slightly from whatever you sautéed in the pan. You could pick up fish or meat or vegetable flavors.
As a side note, salt is used to clean cast or mineral iron skillets.
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Why do you roast salt?
Simply for showshopping impact, it's hard to beat, but salt roasting has more to offer than presentation theatrics. Since the salt crust creates some insulation against intense heat, the usual candidates for salt roasting are easily overcooked (and very expensive) meats, like beef tenderloin or whole fish.Does toasting salt do anything?
What Is Toasted Salt? The chemically minded out there might scoff at the idea of "toasting" salt. Whereas toasting sugar works by taking advantage of the quirks of thermal decomposition, which you can read about here, no such possibility exists for a substance with the relatively simple molecular structure of salt.What happens when salt is roasted?
When the salt is cooked, the iron structure is simplified and it becomes easier for the gut to absorb. In case of uncooked salt, the iron structure remains the same and increases pressure on the body resulting in high blood pressure and hypertension.Should I salt my roast before cooking?
Not only do you need to season the meat aggressively, you need to do so the night before you plan on cooking it. Explains Rick Martinez, associate food editor: "You're essentially doing a quick dry brine with salt and pepper." This will give the seasoning ample time to permeate beyond the roast's interior.Science: When to Add Salt During Cooking—and Why (It Makes a Huge Difference)
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