Pass the Gourmet Salt

"Salt has been flying off the shelves," says Royal Dahlstrom, a top chef in Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minn., who also cooks and consults for a kitchen store. "In all of my cooking classes, there has been a lot of talk about the best ways to use sea salt and the different flavors each one has -- I even do salt tastings."

Chefs such as Abacus' Kent Rathbun, who enjoys using gourmet salt to give dishes distinctive flavor as well as good consistency, say they treat gourmet salt like a fine olive oil or even wine. They often pair various salts to complementary types of food.

"I use fleur de sel on fish, gray sea salt when we sear foie gras, East Indian smoked salt ... in some hearty meat entrees and Italian sel grosso for seafood," says executive chef Ivan Flowers from Different Pointe of View in Phoenix, Ariz.

Similarly, executive chef Franklin Becker at New York's Brasserie distinguishes among the unique flavor profiles of each: Welsh sea salt, which has a flaky crystal, for rich foods such as raw tuna and salmon; Australia sea salt for cooked foie gras, to accentuate the sweetness of the caramelized liver; and sel gris from Brittany, France, on grilled steak to provide a robust accent to the meat.

In particular, flavored salts -- those that have been smoked or blended with herbs, spices or other flavorings -- are an increasingly popular option among those experimenting with gourmet salts.

Fans say the blends can provide a more complex combination of flavors, giving salts a unique spicy or sweet edge that enhances food.

Didi Davis, a professional chef and instructor, makes such blends. She says she had an epiphany in Paris, where she first tried vanilla salt and decided to start making and selling her own.

She blends vanilla beans with fleur de sel and likes to serve the mixture on melon, popcorn, corn on the cob and even pork tenderloin.

"People are continuously looking for flavor, especially something new and exciting," Davis says. "With flavored salts, all you have to do is cook, sprinkle and enjoy something new and very flavorful."

Shake It Out

Experts say gourmet salt has taken off these days, in large part, for health reasons. As a result, chefs are getting choosy about the kind of salt they use.

Salt lovers want to find ways to make their daily allowance count to maintain a healthy diet. The USDA daily recommended limit is 2,300 milligrams (about one teaspoon of salt), though the average American consumes twice that amount. Considering that high sodium intake is associated with high blood pressure, which sharply raises the risk for heart attack, stroke, congestive heart failure and kidney disease, it's best to keep an eye on the shaker.

Because gourmet salts are often more flavorful, though, you don't have to use as much, Davis explains.

And true salt aficionados -- especially those who haven't yet reached for a thirst quencher -- will be happy to know the gourmet salt trend has already trickled down to the final course.

Salted desserts are showing up on menus around the country, including at the restaurant in Dallas' Hotel Crescent Court: A Rosewood Hotel, where pastry chef Gianni Santin serves an orange olive oil panna cotta with citrus- and fennel-gray-salted caramel sauce.

"Once diners taste the salted desserts, they are pleasantly surprised with how delicious they are," says Santin. "I like to finish their meals with an unforgettable impression."

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