# Iron Chef: 15 Years To Master Salt? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 24, 2006, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878 "2006-02-24T03:10:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/21 "2006-02-24T19:20:09Z")
The whole “15 years to master salt” thing sounds pretty silly, but there are a _lot_ of different types of salt. There’s regular table salt, kosher salt (slightly coarser…makes a huge difference when salting something because the coarse flakes are easier to control. Also tastes different,) coarse sea salt (usually ground or milled,) grey sea salt (moist, minimally processed salt with lots of minerals,) fleur de sel (unprocessed, unwashed sea salt harvested by hand from the Atlantic salt marshes on Ile de Re. Includes lots of minerals, is fantastic for cooking, and has a subtle, earthy, mineral-y flavor,) and probably hundreds of varieties of inland harvested specialty salt (such as Dead Sea salt, Great Salt Lake salt, and minimally processed salts from geological formations like salt domes that have particular local flavors because of differing mineral contents. These last can be, depending on chemistry, be anything from pure white to brown to pink, green, blue, or any color in between.) Depending on what flavors you’re trying to enhance, you could make the whole salting thing pretty intense…but for 99.9999% of cases, one or two will do just fine. I use kosher salt and fleur de sel. ---
**Author:** ![Broken\_Wind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Broken\_Wind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broken_Wind)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/22 "2006-02-24T19:25:24Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > The whole “15 years to master salt” thing sounds pretty silly, but there are a _lot_ of different types of salt. There’s regular table salt, kosher salt (slightly coarser…makes a huge difference when salting something because the coarse flakes are easier to control. Also tastes different,) coarse sea salt (usually ground or milled,) grey sea salt (moist, minimally processed salt with lots of minerals,) fleur de sel (unprocessed, unwashed sea salt harvested by hand from the Atlantic salt marshes on Ile de Re. Includes lots of minerals, is fantastic for cooking, and has a subtle, earthy, mineral-y flavor,) and probably hundreds of varieties of inland harvested specialty salt (such as Dead Sea salt, Great Salt Lake salt, and minimally processed salts from geological formations like salt domes that have particular local flavors because of differing mineral contents. These last can be, depending on chemistry, be anything from pure white to brown to pink, green, blue, or any color in between.) > > Depending on what flavors you’re trying to enhance, you could make the whole salting thing pretty intense…but for 99.9999% of cases, one or two will do just fine. I use kosher salt and fleur de sel. I sense a challenger to the “Sorcerer of Salt”… smackdown! ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/23 "2006-02-24T19:30:04Z")
I’ll be the Duke of Oil. \ ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/24 "2006-02-24T20:05:29Z")
> [@Little Plastic Ninja](#): > > . . .diet salt – potassium chloride or whatever that rank crap is . . . Huh? Salt has no calories. Why would there be diet salt? ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/25 "2006-02-24T20:07:07Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > Huh? Salt has no calories. Why would there be diet salt? It’s salt for low-sodium diets. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/26 "2006-02-24T20:11:32Z")
I gotta get in on this: Grand Pooh-bah of Grits. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Woo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7c8e57/32.png) [@Dr.Woo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Woo)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/27 "2006-02-24T20:21:49Z")
I am the Bacon Bitch. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/28 "2006-02-24T21:29:57Z")
> [@Snickers](#): > > Actually, using salt well as a chef or cook is a pretty subtle thing that can be hard to get right. This is very true. I consider myself a pretty good cook, and I’m extremely conscious of the salt level when I eat my own food. Undersalt by even a small amount and there’s a subtle blandness; oversalt just slightly and you start to lose the natural flavor of the food to the saltiness. When the level of salt is absolutely perfect, you know it; the food fairly sparkles on your taste buds. Yeah, _Iron Chef_ does camp things up a fair amount, but the point about salt mastery is absolutely solid. Oh, and I’m the mayor of maize, so I know whereof I speak. ---
**Author:** ![h.sapiens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e0b2c6/32.png) [@h.sapiens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/h.sapiens)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/29 "2006-02-24T21:36:54Z")
I’m the Empress of Peanut Butter and Jelly. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/30 "2006-02-24T21:39:23Z")
Wasn’t Babe Ruth the _Sultan of Salt_? I myself am merely the _Wizard of Water_ - watch me simmer. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/31 "2006-02-24T23:06:41Z")
Mullah of Meatloaf here. ---
**Author:** ![thirdname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@thirdname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdname)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/32 "2006-02-24T23:11:36Z")
I’m the Comptroller of Coleslaw. ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/33 "2006-02-24T23:25:54Z")
I am the City Councilman of Kraft Mac & Cheese. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/34 "2006-02-24T23:51:42Z")
I’m the Vizier of Chicken Noodle Soup. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2006, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/35 "2006-02-25T00:02:19Z")
> [@Dolores Reborn](#): > > I’ll be the Duke of Oil. > > \ 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2006, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/36 "2006-02-25T00:08:50Z")
ooh, can i be the archduke of raspberry? ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2006, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/37 "2006-02-25T00:12:44Z")
Iron Chef did incorporate a lot of pomp and flamboyance, but it wouldn’t surprise me if the chefs really do take some of these things seriously. Cooking is a serious art form especially in Japan, nearly to the extent of religion or sex (or both!) One of the most memorable Iron Chef moments was a match between I.C. Morimoto and Bobby Flay. At the end of the battle, Flay stood up on the cutting board and pumped his arms in the air to get the audience cheering. Morimoto was FURIOUS. He said, “He stood on the cutting board! That’s an insult to us! Knives and cutting boards are sacred to us! He’s not a real chef, he should be disqualified!” Later they held a rematch, and this time, Flay made a big show of carefully removing the board before standing directly on the counter. Morimoto stared at him with a look that could melt ice; then he shook his head, and grabbed a bottle of sake. KGS, High Priest of Hot Pockets. ---
**Author:** ![bmoak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@bmoak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bmoak)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2006, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/38 "2006-02-25T00:17:44Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > The Japanese version of Iron Chef was always a mixture of reality and camp. (I remember feeling like an idiot when I first read that “Chairman Kaga” wasn’t a real eccentric billionaire). One of the running schticks of the show was to absurdly exaggerate the expertise of individual challengers in a given ingredient or technizque. They were always given nicknames like the “Wizard of Seaweed,” the “Sultan of Saki,” the “Conjurer of Pasta,” “the Magician of Toast.” > > I think that this kind of thing was probably based on a real bit of expertise or trademark ingredient of these chefs but that their level of ability with them was hyped up to the ceiling for entertainment purposes. The salt guy probably was known for using a variety of different kinds of salt so he became the “Socereor of Salt” for the purpose of the show. A little bit of reality, a lot of “show.” Thce cynic in me would say they also wanted to hype up incoming challengers as super-specialists since the quality and reputation of challengers in the earliest seasons was nothing special (top-notch chefs wouldn’t touch Iron Chef until it became a big hit), but there is a trend towards specialization in Japanese professional cooking, and an intense narrow focus on one aspect of a craft is admirable in japanese society. I’ve eaten at noodle joints that serve only soba and not udon (and vice versa). I’ve eaten at places where you don’t need a menu becasue they offer only one or two dishes. ---
**Author:** ![adhemar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@adhemar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhemar)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2006, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/39 "2006-02-25T00:31:31Z")
Marchioness of marchpane ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2006, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878/40 "2006-02-25T00:34:47Z")
You guys are cracking me up! RLMFAO! WHEW! This comment is an insight into the exacting and extreme sense of technicality, perfection, and aesthetic within Japanese artisinal pursuits. Although “salt skills” seem rather arbitrary and simple, it is often the most basic that is raised to artisanal levels within Japanese culture. An entire system, with schools of technique and apprenticeship have arisen in Japan for something as seemingly mundane and simple as serving tea. It is all very zen, to use a cliche. The mentor’s comment is also a pretty typical example of Sempai/Kohei (Senior/Junior) relations- there is always room for improvement, and it’s best to keep your junior humble and working towards real greatness and perfection. I am the President of Chili. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iron-chef-15-years-to-master-salt/345878.md?page=3)