Why Use Non Iodized Salt in Cooking?

Non iodized salt is a standard ingredient for some cooks.

Since the introduction of iodized table salt in the 1920s to combat thyroid disease, some cooks have chosen to use it for cooking and as a table condiment. While some of their reasons are legitimate, others are simply a matter of taste.

Taste

Some gourmet cooks prefer the texture and flavor of additive-free, coarse-grained salts like Kosher salts. Other cooks claim that they can detect the flat, mineral flavor of sodium iodide in table salt and will only use non iodized salt.

Color

Iodized salt can cause some vegetables to cloud, or turn a dark color. This is especially the case in making pickles and sauerkraut. Non-iodized pickling or canning salt is most often used to make pickles.

Iodine Overuse

When food is brined, it is soaked in a salt-rich solution from one hour to three days, as with a whole pork loin. Because of the concern that long exposure of the meat to sodium iodide could be a health risk, non iodized salt is sometimes used in brining.

References

• Gourmet Sleuth: Guide to Culinary Salts
• World Health Organization: Possible Effects of Iodized Salt on the Taste, Color and Consistency of Traditional Pickles