Can anyone suggest a decent salt shaker that I can purchase? I order a highly-rated one from Amazon and it was awful. It had huge holes which caused the salt to pour out. Further, the lid did not screw on well so some salt actually came out from the bottom edge of the lid.
Also, I am in Tampa temporarily and the humidity is causing the salt to “clump” together solidly in the shaker. What will solve this problem?
Thanks in advance.
Putting a few grains of rice in your salt shaker will stop the clumping - the rice absorbs water. I use a salt grinder, which gives me more control that a shaker.
I haven’t used a salt shaker in years… since moving from table salt to Diamond Crystal Kosher. I like the larger flakes, and the fact that it is half the weight by volume means I get much more even seasoning than with table salt.
I keep it in a small Food Saver canister near the cooktop, and in a sugar bowl like vessel on the table.
Salt pig. I live in humid NJ and a ceramic salt pig works here. Avail in plenty of price ranges. My wife glazed one through a local ceramic shop.
I’ve never heard of a salt pig!
Pretty arid here in Southern Oregon so no clumping problem.
I use a salt pig too. The one from Emile Henry (made in France) looks good.
I read that a lot of professional cooks use salt pig rather than a shaker.
Oh you don’t need to be spendy on the ceramic. Spend the $ on good salt.
Oh the things we learn!!
I mostly use kosher salt in a salt pig (right now one in olive wood from Greece IIRC) but when I need some "table salt " I have one like this;
No humidity where I live.
I use something like this those mine probably was 1/10th the price.
We don’t have a salt shaker but use sea salt. We have a little glass container shaped like a skull at the table.
I’ve never gotten that trick to work, and I use a standard salt shaker (like they used to have at diners).
So cool. The Sprout would love that. She never met a skull she didn’t like.
I am in the minority here, but I HATE digging into a salt pig, bowl or other open vessel, either while cooking or at the table. I almost never add salt after cooking, but I do have a pretty antique shaker as well as a sea salt grinder for table use (gets put out when I have guests but is rarely used). For use while cooking, I have this shaker by Tablecraft from Amazon - IMO, the salt comes out at a reasonable rate for cooking (i.e., you don’t have to shake it, but it doesn’t pour out too fast to control, either.). I use non-iodized table salt or fine-ground sea salt in it. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018ATL506/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Agreed on the open vessel, salt pig etc. And I don’t like the refilling without cleaning of shakers that I have seen too often. So the table and stove line up are all disposable.
We have some finish salts too but don’t use them very often.
I will add pepper to almost any dish though, anytime. Especially eggs.
Salt Pig 101, by Martha Stewart I love my antique salt pig, $1 at a garage sale. I keep a long handled stainless spoon in it so it’s an easy dig and sprinkle. Diamond Kosher is my "stove salt’, Malden for finishing when appropriate. As Martha inadvertently shows us, just about any wide-mouth container works.
I also keep an aluminum shaker like @shrinkrap in the prep area.
Really two questions here. If you are talking about table salt shakers, many are available, for almost any price. I see them all the time at yard sales, and the rice trick really does work.
I am also in the salt pig by the stove group, but they are also available at little cost, and the ones made by well known makers don’t work any better. I found the table size salt pigs pictured here at a market in France a couple of years ago, made in Portugal I believe. We use three or four on the table. About 2 1/2 inches across - the best of both worlds
Huh. My mom always did it, and I don’t, 'cause I use the very coarse salt and grind.
Rice will work well (Tampa resident for 30+ years)
But I don’t use a shaker. My salt receptacle is a round bamboo canister with a swivel lid. It seems to manage the moisture level of the salt well…and I think I paid $7 for it at Publix. Its coarse sea salt or kosher at my house, and nobody measures it…its a one, two, or three finger pinch.
Thanks so much for your thoughtful comments and suggestions, everyone. I have a salt pig at home, but, like biondanonima, I hate opening and digging into a salt pig while cooking. I usually measure out the amount of salt the recipe specifies from a Mason jar of salt (which has a plastic screw-on lid). But while tasting what I’m cooking, I may find I need just a tiny bit more salt. I’ve used my shaker at home so often that I know about how much I’m shaking in and nail it correctly about 98% of the time.
But while temporarily in humid Tampa, I will have to a) find a decent shaker, unlike the dreadful one I just ordered from Amazon, and 2) add some rice to that shaker. I really appreciate the suggestions and photos of shakers, the advice to add rice to the shaker, and, even though I don’t use them, the lovely pictures of salt pigs. Thanks!
