Salt

Evil On Your Table

Humans cannot live without salt. Earliest settlements were build around salt producing ponds and springs. Caravans trekked deserts trading salt ounce-for-ounce for gold.. The Romans soldiers were paid a salarium possibly to purchase salt (hence the word "salary"). Roads were built to transport it and Europeans kings taxed it heavily.








Still, we need to understand that the refined table salt (the one that pours!) and the cooking salt found in mainstream grocery stores can have a huge impact on our health.
For proper body functions, we need to eat what I usually refer to as "real salt", unrefined and still containing 84 minerals and essential elements.
Table salt is 97.5% sodium chloride and 2.5% chemicals such as iodine and moisture absorbents, namely aluminum. Its chemical structure is changed during processing at over 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit. What remained after this chemical cleansing is sodium chloride, an altered salt that our body cannot recognize as food.

Most processed foods (canned, frozen...) are preserved with this kind of salt. If you think that 9 out of every 10 dollars spent on food go toward processed food, you realize the extent of the problem.

Table salt crystals are isolated from each other and the body needs to expend an immense amount of energy to try to metabolize table salt. The fluid balance is destabilized, which puts a lot of stress on the body's elimination system:

-to neutralize the overdose of sodium chloride we ingest, water molecules surround it to break it up into sodium and chloride ions;

-perfectly structured water is taken from our cells which results in dehydrated cells, ultimately killing them prematurely;
 
-when the body cannot get rid of all the sodium chloride, it utilizes a lot of cell-water to neutralize it, causing excess fluid in tissue. This can contribute to kidney and gall-bladder stones, arthritis, gout, and yes, cellulite.

The average American consumption of table salt is from 4,000 to 10,000 mg/day: that's 1 to almost 3 teaspoons.
Table salt packaging never list the other dangerous additives because the manufacturers are not required by law to do so. The winner is clearly aluminum hydroxide (an alloy that nicely deposits in the brain) added to keep the salt from caking. After all, isn't it such an inconvenience for the cook that the darn salt would clump? Wouldn't you rather chose the risk of Alzheimer's disease?
Furthermore, the anti-caking agents perform the same function in the human body, so refined salt does not dissolve and combine with the water and fluids present in our system. Instead it builds up in the body and leaves deposits in organs and tissue, causing severe health problems like hyperthyroidism.
If that was not enough to scare you away from table salt, you need to know that the aluminum used in salt production leaves a bitter taste, so manufacturers usually add sugar in the form of dextrose to hide the taste. Refined sugar is associated with the development of more than 60 diseases.

What are some alternatives to table salt?

Organic (unrefined) sea salt contains minerals and trace minerals that the body can use. Sea salt is harvested near ocean coasts, where the sea water is channeled into a of clay-lined ponds. Ocean water evaporate under the action of sun and wind, and a mineral-rich brine is left. The salt-farmer stimulates this mixture to help in the crystallization then gather the salt by hand using wooden tools. This harvesting method preserves the vital balance of the minerals we need.  




But beware, as many salts labeled “sea salt” are washed or boiled, which removes minerals and trace elements from the salt. When shopping look for “organic” sea salt.

 My favorite, and the favorite of many chefs is the magnificent and VERY expensive Fleur de Sel 
(of course it has to be French) which is the salt that floats to the top of salt ponds crystallized by the sun.  

Another must in every kitchen is the Himalayan Pink Salt which offers natural elements identical to those in our body, which given the state of the Earth oceans might be purer than sea salt.

                                                                                                                     
Iodine is not added to organic sea salt (Himalayan salt may contain a small amount of iodine). It is needed for the production of thyroid hormone and as the body does not make iodine,  it is essential to eat foods that contain it.

Raw grass-fed cow's milk, cheeses and yogurt
Pastured organic eggs 

Saltwater fish
Organic seaweed (including kelp, dulce, nori)
Shellfish

Organic potatoes

Organic strawberries

Watercress (the oldest known leaf-vegetable consumed by humans).

Salt-Crust Fish

• 2 tablespoons coriander seeds
• 1 tablespoon crushed black peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1 3-pound cleaned scaled whole fish (white fish works best), fins removed
• 1 cup thinly sliced leek (white and pale green parts only)
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced
• 2 large egg whites
• 1/4 cup filtered water
• 2 26.5-ounce boxes coarse organic sea salt (6 cups)
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Lemon wedges for serving

Preparation

• Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 450°F. Line large baking sheet or oven-proof glass dish with foil, leaving generous overhang. In skillet, combine first 3 ingredients and toast seeds/spices over medium heat until beginning to pop, stirring frequently, 7-9 minutes. Cool spices then coarsely crush in mortar.
• Rinse fish inside and out and pat dry. Sprinkle all of seeds/spices mixture in fish cavity. Stuff with leek and lemon slices.
• Blend egg whites and water in large bowl with whisk. Add salt. Stir until salt is evenly moistened. Spread about 2 cups of the salt mixture in 4' x 12" strip (or to match length of fish) on foil sheet. Place fish on salt. Cover fish completely with remaining salt mixture, pressing to seal.
• Bake fish 25 minutes, remove from oven and let stand in crust 10 minutes.
• Using a large knife, rap crust sharply to crack. Brush salt from fish, cut and serve with lemon wedges and olive oil on the side.
  
  
  Bon Appetit!