# How do you keep salt in the shaker free flowing?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-keep-salt-in-the-shaker-free-flowing/134095>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [October 27, 2002, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-keep-salt-in-the-shaker-free-flowing/134095 "2002-10-27T08:58:39Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-keep-salt-in-the-shaker-free-flowing/134095/21 "2014-09-01T14:49:00Z")

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zombie or no

frost free or not, frigs are damp places.

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**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-keep-salt-in-the-shaker-free-flowing/134095/22 "2014-09-01T15:57:10Z")

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Fridges are dry places. Consult your lettuce if you want to know the true story.

It is humid here year round. Never hot, always humid. One time we had large fungi (unidentified ascomycete) grow in a closet. We gave up on salt shakers (and rice) long ago and keep salt in a corked glass jar, with a waxed wooden salt spoon.

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**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-keep-salt-in-the-shaker-free-flowing/134095/23 "2014-09-01T16:21:15Z")

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As a child, I lived a long time in Freetown, West Africa. Whenever we had a dinner party (which was fairy often) and the salt refused to exit the cellar, the cry would go up “Salt’s damp - sack the cook.” Apparently the salt was supposed to be put in the oven to dry before being served.

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**Author:** ![excavating\_for\_a\_mind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e8c25b/32.png) [@excavating\_for\_a\_mind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/excavating_for_a_mind)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-keep-salt-in-the-shaker-free-flowing/134095/24 "2014-09-01T16:33:42Z")

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If you really want to freak your dinner guests right out, use a few grains of black rice.

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**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-keep-salt-in-the-shaker-free-flowing/134095/25 "2014-09-01T21:58:13Z")

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> [@Enola\_Straight](#):
>
> Rice will mechanically break up the salt clumps.
> 
> If you want to absorb moisture to prevent clumping in the first place, put a pinch of corn starch in the shaker.

Yes, but the cornstarch is a powder, and it will come out the holes onto your food. The rice absorbs enough moisture, does some mechanical breakup, and doesn’t come out of the shaker onto your food.

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**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\
**Post date:** [September 2, 2014, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-keep-salt-in-the-shaker-free-flowing/134095/26 "2014-09-02T01:01:38Z")

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Yes, but the cornstarch has no taste and is not visible in the shaker.

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