SALT

Just a little commentary on salt in cooking. Some of the bad points about salt:

• It numbs the taste buds so the subtle flavors of the dish are obliterated leaving salt as the only detectable flavor.

• Salt draws out the juices in meat leaving the dish less tender and not as juicy as it might have been.

• Salt contributes to high blood pressure with The FDA recommending 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day maximum. Each teaspoon of salt contains 2,000 mg of sodium (salt).

My recommendation for flavor and good health is to learn to enjoy food's natural taste. Put the salt shaker on vacation or at least cover up half the holes on the shaker and don't add any while prparing foods. At first your food may seem bland, but give it a chance. Over a relatively short time, your taste buds will recover from the constant desensitizing of salt and will find new and wonderfull flavors you never knew existed.

Here is a list* of some of the worst offenders for sodium(salt) content:

Onion salt
Celery salt
Garlic salt
Seasoned salt
Meat tenderizer
Baking powder
Baking soda
Monosodium glutamate (msg)
Soy sauce
Steak sauce
Barbeque sauce
Catsup
Bouillon cubes
Mustard
Worcestershire sauce
Salad dressings
Pickles
Chili sauce
Relish
Salt shaker

*Source: Sodium in the Diet, by J. Anderson, L. Young, E. Long and S. Prior

Some suggestions for non-salt flavoring/seasonings :

• Lemon Juice/Peel
• Orange juice/Peel
• Lime Juice/Peel
• Rosemary
• Balsamic Vinegar
• Thyme
• Basil
• Marjoram
• Oregano
• Sage
• Dill Weed
• Savory
• Pepper