Welcome to Plus One, a column by Meals Editor Emily Ziemski the place small-but-mighty additions—elements, sauces, toppings—that immediately improve no matter’s on the desk are the star of the present. At the moment, a solution to fight Late Summer season Erasure™.
Summer season—and outside grilling—season might technically nonetheless be in full swing, however it’s arduous to disclaim the whispers of fall decorations and the much less… whispery declarations that pumpkin-spiced the whole lot IS. BACK. (I get it! Please cease yelling at me, Dunkin’ commercials.)
For me, that arduous lower off of swapping sunscreen for sweaters yearly has all the time felt a little bit too abrupt. Although I have been quoted as saying foolish issues resembling “I am uninterested in my summer season wardrobe” and “It is mainly virtually Halloween,” do not be fooled—I am not fairly able to let go of summer season flavors.
Enter my new favourite trick: vanilla salt. I’ve taken a cue from the likes of different versatile spices (suppose: ginger, cardamom, and nutmeg) that seamlessly make the transition from candy to savory, and utilized it to a spice that will get a really sweet-heavy therapy in our kitchens. (That being mentioned, I not often belief a cookie recipe that does not have at the least a contact of vanilla extract, paste, or a dutifully-scraped bean.) The dulcet aroma of vanilla because it cooks—amplified by the hygroscopic nature of salt (extra on this under)—is the right accompaniment to hearty grilled meats, a ending sprinkle on baked items and goodies, or perhaps a garnishing rim of a cocktail.
I am often an enormous proponent of a flavored salt, and salt generally. (Besides garlic salt, however that is largely as a result of I would choose to eat a completely unrecommended quantity of garlic.)
With salt, the appliance of it does a number of issues in cooking. It attracts out extra moisture, which is why it was used to remedy meats earlier than refrigeration was a factor; why you’ll be able to salt your tomatoes then pat them dry earlier than including to a sandwich to alleviate soggy bread; why we season our meals earlier than, throughout, and after cooking. That final one feels apparent, however usually, once we’re taught to cook dinner, we study we should add salt, with out ever actually figuring out why. Principally, when a meals merchandise loses moisture, the flavour of it will get concentrated or amplified. That is primarily what salt is doing each time you season one thing. So, the extra salt, the higher nuance of taste that is allowed to be expressed in a dish. And to not fear, it takes a good quantity of salt earlier than issues flip “salty.”
One other factor salt does is promote Maillard response, or the browning of protein. It is the golden brown kiss on the highest of a chocolate chip cookie, the pronounced char on a grilled steak, and even the crispy edges of a superbly fried egg. That is partly due to the shortage of moisture as said above, as when proteins lack moisture, they will coagulate extra simply because of the discount of sugar and the denaturing of protein when it hits warmth. (I really like meals science!!)
That is all to say: Salt = extra taste, higher shade, and higher texture of your meals.
So how does vanilla play into this all? Vanilla is deeply fragrant, and when it is heated up, it imbues the air round it with the perfect odor. You realize it. It is that previous actual property trick of baking cookies to lure in patrons for a home. By combining the flavour enhancing energy of salt with the sweet-without-being-sugary points of vanilla, and you’ve got a multi-purpose seasoning mix that’ll have folks saying “WHAT salt?”
Although I’ve offered a unfastened recipe for the creation and storage of this salt, what you do with it’s actually as much as you. Beneath, I’ve compiled a sort-of complete, sort-of aspirational listing of the whole lot I’ve tried vanilla salt on, or issues I’ve dreamed of making an attempt sooner or later.
Protein:
Get this on the grill, ASAP. My first-ever check with this salt was on some juicy sea scallops, and the light sweetness of the flesh, partnered with the fruity fragrant nature of the vanilla, was mainly designed for the grill. Any white fish (cod, halibut, and many others) that you just’d take into account tossing on the grill most likely has the right delicate profile for a little bit vanilla salt.
For steaks—particularly ones served with a brown butter sauce—vanilla is a candy beacon in a closely savory sea. A part of the sear on a steak is mainly caramelization—there’s that Maillard response once more—and vanilla is a widely known pair for something caramel.
For those who’re making your personal gravlax as a weekend venture, attempt swapping out half of the salt rub for vanilla salt. This, on a bagel with cream cheese, could be heaven.
Veggies:
My grilled cabbage recipe from earlier this yr referred to as for a tangy and brilliant preserved lemon dressing. The proper fodder to sunny acidity is grounding sweetness. Sprinkled over the cabbage earlier than grilling permits the salt to attract out a number of the extra moisture of the cabbage, permitting the tender leaves to shine with the trace of vanilla.
Final days of summer season, meet squash salad. Whilst you’re already melding the perfect of each seasons (fall-favorite: squash, and summer season sensation: salad), why not add this salt to morph your dinner desk choices into a real end-of-summer celebration?
Fruits + Sweets:
Watermelon & Salt… hello! A good looking solution to elevate the sweetness with out including extra sweetness to this mainly good summer season fruit. For extra tart-leaning fruits, like a bitter melon, and even grapefruit, vanilla lends that baking-spice notice that mellows acidity and tempers bolder flavors.
A whole lot of espresso beans have notes of vanilla already, so a baked deal with like these fan-favorite coffee & toffee blondies could be nicely served swapping the 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt for vanilla salt.
Cocktails:
I loudly exclaimed to our Take a look at Kitchen one afternoon {that a} vanilla salt rim on a mango margarita could be so good, and somebody slacked me from throughout the workplace asking if I used to be making them, and if in order that they needed one as a result of, “sizzling rattling.” (Their phrases.)
Harper Fendler requires saline answer in his espresso martini, however a swap of vanilla salt (only a pinch, added within the dry shake) would additionally do the trick fairly properly—amplifying the sweeter notes of the chilly brew and cinnamon whip.
Extra from Meals Editor Emily Ziemski
How will you be utilizing vanilla salt? Tell us under!