Q: A recent recipe called for sea salt. Can table salt be substituted in equal measures?
— Barbara Knoppe,
Madison Heights, Mich.
A: Peruse the spice aisle at most grocery stores and check out the salt offerings. The shelves are lined with a dizzying array of salts from those labeled fine to flaked to coarse to standard iodized and non-iodized table salt. You can also toss in pink salt and grey salt — more on these later.
Depending on size of the salt crystals most salt can be substituted for each other. If you are substituting table salt for regular sea salt (not coarse or flaked) you can substitute one for the other in equal amounts. The majority of the difference will come when you use larger amounts.
But when it comes to salt in general, not all are the same. And we should point out that while you might see sea salt promoted as healthier than table salt, both have the same nutritional value.
“Gram for gram salt is salt. It’s sodium chloride,” says Bethany Thayer , registered dietitian nutritionist and director for the Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention for Henry Ford Health System.
Thayer says coarse sea salt and kosher salts tend to have bigger crystals so if your recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of coarse sea salt or kosher salt, those large crystals take up more space.
“Less of the bigger crystal salt fits in that teaspoon compared to the finer crystal table salt, which is why people think that it’s healthier. But it’s really lower in sodium because you are using less of it,” she says.
The latest U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day. A 1/4 teaspoon of salt contains 575 milligrams sodium. Other sources, like the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CPSI) says a better limit is 1,500 milligrams. But most Americans salt intake comes from processed foods not the salt shaker.
The big differences in the amounts you use and substitute is in the size of the crystals. It can also differ when you use certain brands.
To substitute kosher for table salt you will need to use more kosher salt, because the kosher variety is not as salty as table salt. And the amount of the substitution depends on the brand. For example, substitute 1 1/2 tablespoons Morton kosher for 1 tablespoon of regular granular salt or 2 tablespoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt.
When it comes to seasoning, kosher salt is the go-to salt for most chefs. The reason is not only the flavor but the crystal size. It’s easier for chefs to grab crystals with their fingers and judge how much seasoning they are adding to a dish.
Finally, pink salt is that color because of where it’s mined. You will see many products labeled Himalayan Pink sea salt. It has the same flavor of salt. And many sea salts, because of how they are produced retain same natural minerals. Grey salt, typically from France has the greyish tinge and is bit moist.
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