Salt?

I was watching a television show on cooking, which I love to do! I noticed that spices were used at different times in the process. Some need to be added at the beginning so that their flavours will saturate the foods, some are added midway, and others are added at the end. I love spices, so I was intrigued with this, and watched to learn more.

I noticed that most strong spices were the ones added late, they would cause the foods to be extremely strong if used too early, and really hot if the wrong spice.

Some of the hotter pepper spices were used at the beginning, so that the heat would penetrate the foods, especially soups or stews, and give the warmth throughout the dish.

A lot of the sweeter spices were added last, giving just a hint of the spice.

It usually takes some experimenting to figure out where to add certain spices to get the end result that you are looking for.

I also learned, many years ago, that you cannot take spices away if you add the wrong one or add too much. I made my mom some soup when I was very young and added too much salt. Now I know that you can add raw potatoes to the soup, let them cook a bit and take them out, they will remove some of the salt. Or you could add lots more ingredients and no more salt, although you would end up with enough soup for a large crowd. But for the most part, you will have to start over.

Oddly enough, my favourite spice is salt. I say oddly enough because I am a “sweet” girl. Give me cakes, cookies, chocolates, anything sweet and I will be happy. But salt is an amazing spice. It brings out the flavour of certain foods. When added to meats, especially grilled meats, the flavour intensifies, and even the cheapest meats will be tastier.

When added to sweet foods, they will taste sweeter. I have not reasoned how this happens, I just accept the fact that sweet foods can be sweeter with the right salts. (try this, it does work, like salted caramel with chocolate)

But just like hot spices, salt has different types and each one will taste a little different. I have learned that my favourite is sea salt, most types. They never seem to be bitter, as some can be. I know that when we go out to eat, which is rare in todays world, as most places are closed, I usually taste the salt before I add it to any food. And I taste the food first to see if it needs salt. If the salt you are adding at the end just before eating is bitter, you will ruin your food. All the time spent preparing the meal, just to be done in with a small thing like a grain of salt.

When adding salt to the meal, at the end of cooking, I did learn that the way to add the salt is to hold it above the plate, about a foot up, and sprinkle very lightly over the dish. This allows the salt to fall over everything and you will not end up with one area saltier than another.

You might wonder why I am writing about salt. It is just a spice, a flavouring, nothing much. But notice all the things that salt does in cooking. It makes things saltier, tastier, sweeter. But can also make things bitter. What an amazing spice.

There is another thing that can do the same things. It can make things saltier, taste good so that you feel energetic and wanting to go run a race. It can make things sweeter, so that you feel loved.

But it can also make you feel sad, hurt, bitter, so that you just want to hide or hit, you get angry and don’t know what to do.

Words

“You won’t amount too much.”

“You can’t do anything!”

“I hate you!”

“You’ll never get over this, it will be a stumbling block for your life!”

Bitter, angry, hurt, sad. All words that will cause someone to feel these emotions. Proverbs 15:1

“You can do this, you are able to win the race!” Saltier, giving energy to believe in yourself, you can do it! 1 Corinthians 9:24

“You are a great brother. You are a great parent! You are a wonderful man. You are a beautiful woman. You are a child of God!” Sweeter, giving hope and telling that you are loved. 1 Corinthians 13:4-5, 1 John 4;7-8

I want to be the salt that energizes, that improves the taste, that gives sweetness, love too others. I want my words to fall gently over the situation, not just in a clump in one area. I want to help, not hurt or hinder.

I don’t always do this. I talk too much, and words like salt cannot be taken away. I cause anger in others, not the fighting kind, more like irritating words.

I also have many times that I give the sweetness of love and kindness and helpfulness to others, and those words are my favourite, even when I don’t see the result of them.

I try to remember Ephesians 4:29, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen”. I do try to use this when I start to use words that are not wholesome.

It is not always easy, even my husband would agree with this. But I do keep on going forward, towards the end of the race, learning along the way how to use words. And how to use salt to its best advantage!

‘Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.” Colossians 4:6