On Food and Cooking

The Physical    Properties  of  Salt

Salt generally remains a solid in the
kitchen unless it’s dissolved. Room-
temperature water can dissolve around
35% of its weight in salt, to give a
saturated solution of 26% salt that boils at
around 228ºF/109ºC at sea level.
The particle size of salt crystals
determines how fast they will dissolve, a
fact that can make a big difference when
adding salt to a low-moisture food, for
example to a bread dough that has been
made by the autolysis method (p. 536).
Flake salts may dissolve four to five times
faster than granulated salt, and finely
ground salt nearly 20 times faster.
Solid salt crystals melt at
1,600ºF/800ºC, and evaporate at around
3,000ºF/1,500ºC, temperatures reached in
wood fires and glowing coals, which can
vaporize salt and deposit a thin film on
foods above them.