is the salt used in indian food a natural salt or is it made in some way? i am curious because someone told me that it is made using some type of seed.

thanks sid

Indian kala namak comes from rocks, as far as I know. It has a sulphur like smell.

kala namak is volcanic salt. All salt (in the sea) came from volcanoes originally. Black salt is really dark violet in colour, and almost pure sodium chloride, with tiny amounts of metal salts, such as iron, which probably gives the salt the colour. The smell of rotten eggs comes from the volcanic gases (mostly based on sulphur) which dissolved in the salt solution before it crystallizes.

Note, contrary to some claims, it is almost pure sodium chloride, and contains only minute traces of potassium chloride, so the belief that it is good for low salt diets is not only false, but potentially life threatening.

As part of chat masala (spicy salt) it imparts a meaty flavour, in low concentrations, surprisingly good on fruit!

thanks for the replies. while we are on the subject of salt do you believe that the claims made about the himalaya rock salt are true or is it just another form of salt that they charge over the odds for?

sid

what do they claim ?

Kala Namak is also Himalayan salt, mostly.

Only claim about salt worth believing is that we should eat less of it, especially in cold countries, where we do not loose much through sweating/perpiration.

Himalayan salt contains all the minerals and trace elements of which our bodies are made. Natural salt is crucial for maintaining vital functions in the body. Himalayan salt has no preservatives or additives. Doctors and alternative therapists agree that Himalayan salt is the cleanest salt available on the planet to deliver remarkable health benefits. Himalayan crystal salt is pristine and natural. It consists of the most perfect geometric structure possible in rock crystals, the result of millions of years of compression under the Earth?s surface. Its has precise mesh with our body's inner workings because Himalayan salt contains an almost identical set of elements to those found inside the human body, 84 of the possible 92 trace minerals, in the same proportion as naturally exists in our blood...

what a load of *******s. Of all the minerals (actually elements) that are not man-made, only about 20 of them, if I remember correctly, are necessary for life. The other elements are either inert to life, or down right toxic to humans.

Salt for human consumption is almost entirely sodium chloride, even sea salt is mostly that, with minor amounts of potassium, calcium and magnesium.

I think the use of salt is a bit misleading, we need it to appreciate the flavour of food, and excess is easily washed from the body. The chloride is essential for stomach acid, and the sodium essential to maintain heart rate (with potassium).

I prefer sea salt crystals, as I think it tastes a little better than table salt, and I like the crystals because they provide little pockets of flavour (together with the food).