Prepare the Dill and Vinegar Stalks Salted Salt
People look for dill because of its feathery, fragrant leaves, while the crunchy stems are largely ignored. They don’t have the same strong aroma as their leafy cousins, but when ground and mixed with salt, you get a green, vegetable salt that smells like dill. Mix this with a little powdered vinegar ( sodium acetate ) and you have a spicy, salty seasoning with pickle sensitivity.
This salted salt is slightly softer and softer than what you usually find in commercial pickled cucumber-flavored snacks. Instead of being sour and sour, it is spicy and slightly sweet. It infuses the flavor of pickled dill rather than hitting them on the head. You can also leave sodium acetate for the pure dill-flavored salt, which will be fine for egg dishes, especially Benedictine dishes. To make this tart dill salt you will need:
For dill salt:
- 1 bunch remaining dill stalks, weighed
- Equal amount of salt by weight
For sodium acetate:
- 1 rounded tablespoon of baking soda
- About 2 cups white vinegar
Weigh the stems, pay attention to the mass and chop them into small pieces. Add them to the bowl of a food processor with equal weight of salt and whisk to combine the herbs and salt. Place the mixture on a baking sheet lined with parchment and dry in the oven at 250 ℉ until dry and crispy (about an hour). Return to a food processor (washed and dried) and grind into a fine powder. If all you need is dill salt, stop here.
If you want to add a pungent smell to your dill salt, add a rounded tablespoon of baking soda to a large measuring cup or medium mixing bowl. Add the vinegar in small splashes, stirring after each addition, until the mixture stops sizzling as more vinegar is added, even after stirring. This means that the acid-base reaction is complete and you now have sodium acetate dissolved in water. To turn it into powder, pour it into a saucepan and boil it down. It will smell bad, especially if you don’t like the vinegar smell, so open the window. As soon as the liquid level starts to drop, keep a close eye on the pot as crystals will form quickly.
Scrape wet crystals out of a saucepan and place them on a coffee filter to absorb excess moisture before transferring crystals to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Dry in oven 250 ℉ until dry.
To make pickled salt, mix sodium acetate with an equal volume of dill salt. Sprinkle with popcorn (yes), unsalted chips, hard-boiled eggs, or anything else you think could be improved by adding a little salty flavor.