# Can one make imitation salt? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 11, 2012, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-make-imitation-salt/643771 "2012-12-11T23:54:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-make-imitation-salt/643771/21 "2012-12-13T03:38:20Z")
You shouldn’t have thrown it away, it’s pretty nasty sprinkled on food but it works pretty good when you cook with it. It doesn’t so much taste as salt, more it fills the gap kind of, so when you taste your sauce, or whatever, you don’t immediately think, “Gah - it needs salt!” And it makes your homemade bread almost salt free. People on low strict low sodium diets really have to sacrifice bread a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-make-imitation-salt/643771/22 "2012-12-13T04:20:02Z")
I don’t know if I’ve tried nusalt, but I have tried Morton brand KCl salt and there was an obvious taste difference between that and NaCl table salt. However Morton lite salt which is 50/50 potassium and sodium tastes pretty decent when you use it as a topping on things like potatoes. I have a coworker who is salt sensitive (only about 1/3 or so of people are salt sensitive, he is one of them) and his wife does a lot of cooking with things other than salt. Various herbs and spices, etc. She doesn’t even bother with potassium salt, she uses various other things. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-make-imitation-salt/643771/23 "2012-12-13T15:51:57Z")
> [@feppytweed](#): > > I’ve tried NoSalt, and I couldn’t tell a difference. Is that the potassium chloride stuff? It tastes like metal shavings. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-make-imitation-salt/643771/24 "2012-12-13T16:06:00Z")
> [@Quercus](#): > > Don’t know about the others, but I’m pretty sure the Silicon Dioxide (i.e. sand) is just there for texture. I don’t know, based on the reviews herein, mixing it with dirt might have been for favor. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-make-imitation-salt/643771/25 "2012-12-13T16:24:37Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > However Morton lite salt which is 50/50 potassium and sodium tastes pretty decent when you use it as a topping on things like potatoes. My work canteen has sachets of [Lo-Salt](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LoSalt) along with the regular salt. It’s 2:1 KCl/NaCl and tastes fine to me - not the same as ordinary salt, but not at all unpleasant. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-make-imitation-salt/643771/26 "2012-12-13T19:23:05Z")
> [@Quercus](#): > > Don’t know about the others, but I’m pretty sure the Silicon Dioxide (i.e. sand) is just there for texture. I’m pretty sure it’s being used as an anti-caking ingredient. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-make-imitation-salt/643771.md?page=1)