Why do we add salt to our food?
By,
Ragavaishnavi Yasotaran
There is no complete food without salt. Saltiness is generally ranked with sweetness, bitterness, and acidity as a basic taste sensation, experienced on the tongue. Saltiness and sweetness are the most preferable taste and people have been craving for it since back then.
Thousands of years ago, the Chinese began to produce salt by evaporating sea water in wide pans over heat. Sea salt evaporated artificially or naturally in bays, form brittle flakes.
Salt is judiciously added into foods, enhances the other flavours in it. It also has preservative powers which placed it at the centre of the seasonal battle for survival in agricultural societies. From China to Europe, salt cured sausage and bacon have added variety to the winter diet.
Now, refrigeration preserves foods more simply and salted products have lost their place as staples. We eat salami, bacon, ham, anchovies, olives and preserved vegetables for gastronomic merit rather than out of seasonal necessity. As appetizers and garnishes they provide the valued hint of saltiness.
We also need salt to maintain sound health. In the fluid surrounding the thousands of millions of cells that make up our bodies, the main conductors of electricity are sodium and chlorine. Salt is vital in maintaining the body’s water content, but excessive consumption of it has been linked to high blood pressure.
