Black Salt

Used in northern Indian cooking, particularly in the snacks, beverages and salads sold from street carts and stalls, black salt is sold in crystal or powder form, has a very mild but interesting flavour and smells more pungent than it tastes. It is not a sea salt, but rather is mined in quarries found on the fertile plains of central India. Sometimes sold as rock salt, the amber to dark-brown crystals become a smoky grey when ground. Black salt contains no sodium, so has no effect on blood pressure and is in fact considered an antidote to dehydration (it is even mixed into lemonade to counter the effect of the heat). Available: Indian food stores.