Chef Sara's Table

Let's welcome Chef Sara Simmons to the Hold the Salt campaign (Clap! Clap! Clap!). This Detroit native is honest in her commentary on her salt experience. She also provides us with ways we can limit our salt intake while enjoying good food. Here we go...!

I am admittedly a salt addict. I’m not quite as bad as Chef Anne Burrell who puts a handful of salt into any given meal, but I love salt so much that I want to actually feel the crunch of it under my teeth. True, I eat it like it’s a crust topping. However, I have adopted some eating/cooking practices that can help you curb big sodium pitfalls:

1. Explore other ethnic cuisines: I've found that American fare is notoriously overly dependent on salt to coax out flavors, so I enjoy eating ethnic foods that utilize a variety of flavors and seasonings. One great example is Indian. Any given dish will have at least 10 spices, and the food is often braised and stewed to really concentrate the flavors. They also tend to use a balance of acid (sour cream, citrus) and sweet fruits like raisins and currants so that your palate is full. Another BIG flavor coaxer is Ethiopian food. Are you seeing a theme? Braised foods, cooking in their own juices for hours, will enhance the flavors of the ingredients. You just have to have a little “Big Mama” patience.

2. Use kosher salt instead of table. I’ve read that it is lower in sodium, and because the granules are bigger, you get more bang for your buck.

3. Introduce foods into your meals that you hadn’t considered before….like sweet potatoes in your stews. Veggie up your meals; truth be told, most meats are seasoned to taste like vegetables anyway (ketchup, anyone?). I was inspired by Indian food to incorporate fruits into my savory dishes; now my 3 year old thinks that all rice dishes, stews or soups are supposed to have raisins in them!

4. Don’t even donate those canned vegetables—they are cooked TO DEATH and way too salty. Buy frozen vegetables instead and steam them until they are just tender.

5. Avoid store bought salad dressings: They have not only a lot of sodium, but an obscene amount of sugar as well. If you have one-part acid (vinegar, citrus) and two-parts olive oil, you have a delicious salad dressing. I invite folks to play with variations (adding herbs, honey, Dijon mustard) to figure out what your personal favorite is—mine is balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

6. For that matter, don’t buy store bought sauces of any kind: That includes pasta sauces. All you need to make a great spaghetti sauce is crushed tomatoes, Italian seasoning, garlic and olive oil. And it costs about the same too.

7. Don’t kid yourself: Processed foods have a bunch of sodium—no getting around it. And the faster the food, the higher the amount of sodium in it (why do you think those kids at Chipotle hustle your little carton of burrito down that line so fast! Guilt, I tell ya!). So if you’re serious about reducing your sodium intake, you must call on the will-power gods and divorce yourself from all eateries with the two-window-on-the-side option. But also, if you are an“everything in moderation” type, forgive yourself for making a visit once in a blue moon. Or at least, once in a full moon.

8. Remember, we need a bit of salt. There’s a reason why the Spice Trade was so lucrative—salt triggers flavor. And not just in your food, but in life. In Matthew 5:13, Jesus offers to his disciples: “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?”

Thanks, Chef Sara for sharing your culinary wisdom with us. In the meantime, eat well, live better, and feel better.

-Yo!onda D. Body (c)