How to Substitute Table Salt for Sea Salt

Replace sea salt in any recipe with table salt.

All forms of salt contain sodium chloride and begin with the evaporation of water, according to the Gourmet Sleuth's "Guide to Culinary Salts." Sea salt remains after the water dries from shallow beds filled with seawater. Trace amounts of minerals from the ocean water might also be left behind with the sodium chloride (salt). Table salt comes from water pumped into salt mines and does not contain the trace minerals found in sea salt. This water picks up the salt and after evaporation, table salt remains. Some sea salts might have distinctive flavors, but these disappear when you add them to your food during cooking, and substituting table salt in these applications results in no change in the taste of the dish. Table salt gives you a cheaper, more readily available alternative to sea salt and it will not change the flavor of your dish.

Things You'll Need

• Table salt

Instructions

1. Look for the amount of sea salt required in the recipe.

2. Replace the sea salt in your recipe with the same measure of table salt. For instance, substitute 1 teaspoon of table salt in a recipe needing 1 teaspoon sea salt.

3. Taste your dish before serving to see if you need to add extra salt.

References

• Morton Salt: Substitute Sea Salt for Table Salt
• Gourmet Sleuth: Guide to Culinary Salts

Resources

• Morton Salt: Salt Conversion Chart--Table, Sea and Kosher Salts