April 12, 2013

Worth His Salt

You might have heard the expression that someone’s worth their salt, or that they are not. Our word salary derives from the Latin salarium, (sal is the Latin word for salt) so, in essence, you’re saying someone’s worth their pay.

All of this leads no where, really. But I did buy some amazing salt at the store the other day. It’s called Malden salt and is from England. Without boring you with a lot of chemistry, salt, or sodium chloride, is a crystal, or part of the cubic crystal system, as illustrated below.

image

The fascinating thing about the salt I bought is its structure, which is like the pyramid shapes above. Some of the crystals are hollow pyramids, and others are solid. I am completely fascinated by things like this, so I whipped out my trusty little camera and shot some pictures on my super-scratched stainless steel counter/desk.

As the water evaporates, the salt begins to form the pyramid shape and you can see how it leaves layers.

The top’s been knocked off this pyramid, but you can still see its layers. Salt has been “harvested” in Maldon for more than 2,000 years, and was first discovered there by the slaves of Casius Petrox, commander of a Roman legion. Maldon is on the coast of England near Essex, and from a high of 45 saltmakers, only one, Maldon Salt, still exisits.

For more information and some excellent recipes, check Maldon’s website. image

See, you never know what you’ll find when you read Pigtown*Design!

7 comments:

  1. Yummm! I want to try some on my chocolate salted caramels!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Neat post! The salt layers look like a layered cake, it probably has a delayed taste explosion.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love Maldon Salt! Less bitter than kosher salt and can even be purchased in little tins for travel.

    best,
    teaorwine

    teaorwine.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. Maldon is a constant in my kitchen, as it was in my mother's.

    I stop by daily because while I never know what I'll fine, I know it will be something to delight, illuminate, and intrigue. I don't comment often, but I'm an avid reader and appreciate all your effort to share what delights you.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yes -this salt is amazing. I've been using it for a few years now but i've never noticed the regularity of the pyramidal shapes! I'll have to look more closely from now on -thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oh must get some of this salt. Love how I learn something new from your blog. xxpeggybraswelldesign.com

    ReplyDelete
  7. We use it in the kitchen every day. It's just our normal salt for cooking and eating.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for reading and commenting on Pigtown*Design. I read each and every comment and try to reply if I have your e-mail address.