Sometimes it is fun to think about photo challenge prompts. Last week, I had Paula’s “arranged” on my mind, as well as “depth” – and so this “salt taste test” post is what unfolded:
It all started when I was ready to start my day with some protein, I opened the fridge to find fresh brown eggs.
Geisla, a church lady friend, had sent some farm fresh eggs home with my husband. Now that the Coles have moved away, we are next in line to get eggs regularly (nice).
I decided to wake the house with the smell of sizzling eggs.
To help carry the protein, I pulled out some “brown rice bread” – from Trader Joes.
The loaves are very heavy – like a brick- and it takes forever to toast a piece because it is so dense.
The taste of brown rice bread is smooth and not too bad. Even though it is not my favorite bread in the world, I am grateful for it because it is gluten-free and does not interfere with the “slow going” systemic cleanse I am doing – so that makes it win-win.
Here are the three salts we tried (all were under six dollars from Marshalls).
This was my first sea salt taste test – and so I kept it simple. I ground all the salt down to a medium fine powder.
The results of the salt taste test:
Four of us agreed the pink one was the best -(here) but keep in mind this was tested on eggs that were fried with olive oil. The outcomes might not be the same if we used butter or coconut oil. Also, the results would likely be different if sampled on meats or different food items.
One of the testers said the pink one was saltier than the white, and the black was saltiest of all.
We all agreed.
And someone else said (joking) they all just “tasted like NaCl” ha!
In closing, if you want to know more about the health benefits of unrefined salt – check out empowered sustenance HERE.
Have a nice day…
Very informative! Thanks! Next time you cook those fresh eggs call me 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
haha – that’s a deal! and there really is a difference from store bought and geisla’s fresh beauties..
LikeLike
Yes, I love country fresh eggs!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Brown rice bread! I’ve never heard of them before, but wow those eggs! they are huge compared to what I got 😲
LikeLike
yeah, not all eggs are equal that’s for sure!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lol indeed 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
and actually my photos make them a little larger than they really are – I will have to take a photo of a standard egg and then one of these to show ya…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I will have even more craving then lol!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I never knew there were so many salts! Wonderful and your eggs are beautiful 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
thx – and funny to think that with salt there are even more options outside of the 3 here –
have a nice day
LikeLike
I have not yet had breakfast and am now starving! Could you pop over to make me some of that deliciousness? On your way stop at Trader Joes and pick up a few things will you? Did I mention we don’t have Trader Joes in Canada? Not that I am bitter about it. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
ha – nice play on words – and hopefully you will get some of them sometime soon. when we first moved here I would drive 60 miles to the Hampden Roads TJ and it was worth every second in the car – but then I stopped going for a few years – but now have gone back for different things – – and hoping you have a lovely breakfast. 🙂
LikeLike
Breakfast complete and banana bread in the oven. See what you started? 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
mmmm – sounds good – wish I could smell that bread aroma down here in the States
LikeLiked by 1 person
Very interesting. Glad I had already eaten before reading or I would have had to stop and go fix my breakfast. lol
I did look at the site you suggested and found if you wake in the middle of the night or can’t sleep, you could sprinkle a little salt and sugar on your tongue. I’m putting the shaker beside my bed tonight. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
wow – I did not make it to that tip. hm – but I do know that some people are told to just stop having salt when they have physical problems – (i.e. blood pressure probs) and what is sad about it is that instead of fixing any root causes or addressing the inner imbalances – people are put on meds and given a restricted diet – without getting to the root cause and without rebuilding a health body terrain – and so telling people to not eat unrefined salt is further adding to their probs because they get less magnesium.
LikeLike
One size does not fit all for sure. I just try not to go overboard.
(Hear my husband popping pop corn now. It needs salt…lol )
LikeLiked by 1 person
This makes me want to cook. In my stove. Mmmm salty…
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂 – and flavor can be so good – which is something I think people do not always realize – many times plain (salt-free) and fat-free is presented as healthier – when it is not necessarily….
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s one of my biggest “things” about healthy food myths: healthy doesn’t have to be bland! And “free” doesn’t always mean better for you, healthy food can taste better than regular food, if you put some thinking into it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Interesting – I’m going to try increasing my salt intake a little and see what happens. And thanks for linking another unusual shot into LULD 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
well it is so funny Debbie but when I post I realize that the “teacher” in me is always showing up – ha! and so just for educational purposes –
well keep in mind that sometimes when our body reacts badly to something – it does not always mean we should eliminate it forever – and while the topic can be lengthy – well sometimes we can ingest something that started a healing or cleaning process – but it will make us feel like crap (HERX effect) before it will lead to wellness. so for example, someone takes spirulina and gets tired, groggy and feels completely bad. they stop eating the spriulina and go back to “normal” – but that could be because the greens were starting a detox effect and it was helping them – (can be tiring to heal up and clean up) but many times we are too quick to assess.
however – with salt we do need to be careful –
some people are highly “salt sensitive” because they have other things going on that need to repaired – they need to rebuild their immune system and clean out any microbes or build up of mucoid that is clogging their mucosa lining and other parts of the GI (which then stresses their adrenals and puts pressure on all systems) and so when they eat salt it makes their blood pressure spike – or puffs/swells them up – etc.
and the thing that is so funny is that blood pressure is also spiked by fructose, processed food and stress – but you never hear docs saying “quit sugar” – quit boxed crap foods – but they will be quick to say go salt free.
so when it comes to ingesting salt….
especially with underlying conditions – we all need to remember this motto with all things is to “first do no harm” –
and from Marks daily apple:
“Rather than obsess over the amount of salt in your diet, focus on eating enough potassium-rich foods, avoiding excessive fructose, and managing your stress. These will do more for your heart health, blood pressure, and overall enjoyment of life than measuring out 1/8 teaspoons of salt. You think calorie counting is bad? Try sodium ion counting!”
and MDA also notes this (just FYI)
“Other than saturated fat, I can’t think of a nutrient that’s been so universally maligned and demonized as salt.”
Read more: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/salt-what-is-it-good-for/#ixzz3QvHR8tst
LikeLike
Such a detailed analysis of the varieties of salt. And in favoring the pink one you’re not absolute in its crowning, which I like, because the same salt, as you said, may taste different on a different dish. The eggs look fresh. A deliciously healthy post!
LikeLike
thanks so much Mahesh!
LikeLike
Interesting! I have never had pink salt. As for farm fresh eggs, I had them recently from a friend and they were soooo much tastier than in store – as well as being a brighter yellow for the yolk! Great photos too, by the way 🙂
LikeLike
Thanks Christy – and with the eggs – I really notice a different in the texture too – at least with geisla’s fresh ones – but I wonder if I would be able to choose in a taste test between fresh and store-bought fresh and store bought old –
likely not – especially if scrambled. hm –
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hello Yvette 🙂 I like your experiment. I have never had black salt before, but I have Himalayan pink and white sea salt at home. We find that pink salt is not salty enough so we mostly use the white one, but pink one is healthier. Now I am really in trouble – which one of these photos will I showcase…. Thank you very much for this experiment 🙂
LikeLike
well thx for sharing – and I think the white salt we tried is very low end – and so not all white sea salt is the same – and this one was also iodized – making it a bit processed – but I bet there are much better versions of the the white…
LikeLike
I call myself a saltaholic. I love the pink salt. I’ve never tried the black salt before but I’ll have to give it a try! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
a teetotaling, salt-a-holic!
LikeLiked by 1 person
So very true…! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I never knew there was so many different salts and that they would taste so different. I use white sea salt crystals. I definitely know how different fresh eggs straight from the chooks taste, I was spoilt with them when we were house sitting at Malanda, https://pommepal.wordpress.com/2013/09/19/eggs-eggs-and-more-eggs/ The supermarket ones are rubbery in comparison. Now I am going to get us lunch, your post has made me hungry…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I liked that post – the eggs – and that hammock – yeah baby! have a good lunch -🍲 🍞
and it is almost bed time here… ☁zzzz ☁
LikeLike
Lunch was good…
LikeLike
I also prefer brown eggs, although I’m not sure why. I took my BiL some of that pink salt all the way back to South Africa, only to find that he already has some, bought in his local supermarket. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi S – well that is funny about carrying that salt all the way there to have it there. one time my husband drove to Californian from Florida – and they did an inspection as he was going into California – it was Dec 2001 and they said they were having a big fruit fly problem – so they asked him if he had any produce (coming from Florida) and he reported that he might have a couple in the cooler – and opened it up – and the two oranges said “California Navel” – so he brought west coats oranges from the east coast back to the west coast!
also, I guess the feather color of the hen determines the wheel color – (hens with white feathers = white-shells; hens with red-ish feathers = brown eggs).
LikeLiked by 1 person
Your beautiful photography makes every day items look like works of art. Very, very impressive.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Lisa – thanks for saying that – and your comment reminded me that I actually did take an rtsy photo of the three salts – here is the swirl – which was just a quick second to make – when I was about to toss the salt out back (salt is good for the garden too – hmmm well I guess epsom salt is)
LikeLiked by 1 person
The photo is perfection Yvette! Another reminder the art is all around …you just have to have the eyes to see it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have never seen black salt before! I don’t think they sell it here in Europe..if they do, I might mistaken it to pepper! 🙂 Thank you for informative article Yvette!
LikeLiked by 1 person
well thanks for dropping by Indah – and if you do try it let me know – we found that the black was very potent – but you know – it kinda did look like pepper too!
LikeLike
Your salt photos are really eye catching. The eggs, in their shells, and bread are very appealing subjects.
I rarely add salt to my food because when I eat out the food has more than enough salt in it.
Is olive oil better than rice or canola oil for frying?
Thanks for an interesting post with stunning photos.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hey Dr. Jack – well I know what you mean about not needing to add salt to foods while dining out 🙂 – and with the oils and frying = I am still learning so much = I know nothing about rice oil…
but I do know that the olive oil should be extra virgin good quality for it to be resistant to oxidative damage from cooking – also, butter and coconut oil are really good choices – (and peek here at MDA’s article on “ghee” (HERE) which is “blend of coconut oil and clarified butter” – or butter w/ milk solids removed – never tried it but sounds interesting).
peace
LikeLike
Why I asked about the oil, I was frying with olive oil and Pauline said to use rice. I am not too clued up on these things I just try to keep away from highly processed food. Thanks for communicating so well with your comments.
LikeLiked by 1 person
thank you and I will have to check with P on the rice oil – it is nice to learn about this stuff – thanks again Doctor J
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for this beautiful and informative post about delicious breakfast foods. Your family must have been so happy to wake up to the wonderful aromas of eggs and toast. Your comments on the rice bread interest me. I’ve been making sourdough all winter, and sometimes the loaves are heavy and dense. But sliced thin and toasted, they are just wonderful. We sometimes dip the slice into a dish of olive oil and top with ground salt, garlic, rosemary and ground pepper before slipping it into a hot oven to toast. Just a wonderful way to enjoy it with soup. Thank you for the taste test on the three salts. I’ve been considering the pink Himalayan salt for a while, and your encouragement will send me to Home Goods to buy some now. My go to choice is “sea salt,” but your explanation of the benefits of ancient mined salts is compelling. Happy weekend! Cheers! WG
LikeLiked by 1 person
thanks for your comment WG – the description was right from the label – and I will be very curious to hear about how you like the pink.
I just think that the little things can add up – and a few trace minerals here and there sound good to me – and I cannot find it now – but I have heard of an amazing hydration drink that includes a tablespoon of sea salt – I wish I could find the recipe to share – but it replaces gatorade which is sugar laden with additives. if I find it I will post it here later.
oh – and completely drooling at your beautiful description……
“dip the slice into a dish of olive oil and top with ground salt, garlic, rosemary and ground pepper before slipping it into a hot oven to toast. Just a wonderful way to enjoy it with soup…” mmmmmmm
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is funny that you mentioned adding salt to beverages. Lately I’ve been adding a little grind of sea salt to our coffee grounds before brewing the coffee. I hope you try to olive oil and herb toast. As you say, the little things do add up. Enjoy the crunch 😉 Best wishes, WG
LikeLike
how interesting to add salt to coffee – ☕
~
we have a health food store that sells bags of bagel chips – which I think are similar to your “herb toast” – I will try and drop by your blog to let you know how they come out when I get to trying them…
and here is a picture of something I make in the summer – I call it GARDEN DELIGHT –
it has everything from my little container garden area: japs, tomatoes, basil, red peppers, parsley – and in this version I did a light sauté with butter – hint of fresh parm – served on trader joe’s penne bread – lightly toasted….
LikeLike
That looks amazingly delicious! I love that you grow everything yourself in containers! It goes to show how much we can grow for ourselves with a little planning and imagination. I bet that is hot and spice with the peppers 😉 And white wine?
LikeLike
And I guessed it. (20 years married to a chef) I am leaving here hungry dear one. ♥
LikeLike
well you guessed it at first from a single photo – so I am very impressed indeed. and 20 years w/ chef??? – sounds like a lot of food exposure for sure… (m) peace
LikeLike
I was wishing I had not had breakfast while reading this and also did not know salt had those beneficial effect. I usually steer clear of added salt.
LikeLike
Gosh! I am impressed. Such a delicious post about salt. One of the most basic ingredients and one which was worth its weight in gold many years ago. (Before my time). I must confess that I am a bit of a salt addict – I could easily go without the sugary stuff, but would struggle not to have salt – especially on eggs! And yes, I use the Himalayan Pink Salt, have done so for the last three years. It is delish. (As is your lovely arty salty photo)
LikeLike
thanks so much ❤ – and fun to think how important this precious salt really is -someone shared some images and here are two that were really cool:
LikeLike
Very informative, Yvette!
LikeLiked by 1 person
thanks NAH! 🙂 ❤
LikeLike
I had no idea about these salts! I love to try the brown rice bread! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Amy = I am very grateful for brown rice bread right now – it is very hearty – not bad tasting – and makes excellent toast – which then goes with anything – like eggs – or soup, etc.
LikeLike
Sound so delicious, Yvette! I’ll look for it, love to give a try. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂 – 🍞🍞🍞
LikeLike
(EN) So tasty post Y….I feel hungry 😉 Those who say” it’s simply salt” ,maybe are blind….simple things are so tasty and various….just an opinion mine.Thanks a lot for your post 🙂
(IT) Cosí gustoso il tuo post Y…Mi vien fame 😉 Quelli che dicono” è semplicemente sale” ,forse sono ciechi….le cose semplici sono cosí gustose e varie…solo un opinione la mia.Grazie molte per il tuo post 🙂
LikeLike
ahhh – the wisdom of forthemo – simple things can be so wonderful indeed
hope your week is going well
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ooh… Nice salt-art in the last photo. Someone gifted us some Himalayan pink salt a while back, but it’s just been lying in my pantry. Will be bringing it out soon, given your taste-test 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person