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Chookie

In article >,
(Phred) wrote:

> In article >, Ken Knecht
> > wrote:
> >Why is a lot of the processed food available so salty? Some canned soup
> >brands, for instance. I really can't see the advantage to the producer.
> >
> >The overpowering salt taste reduces the need for other more expensive
> >flavorings?
> >
> >Hides the less than exquisite taste of the product?
> >
> >Any guesses?
>
> A mate was telling me the other day about some cooking program he
> heard/saw recently (not sure if it was on ABC Radio or on one of the
> TV channels here in Oz). Seems the professional cook leading the
> topic claimed that most amateur cooks don't use nearly enough salt in
> their "creations".

Apparently you kinda get used to a particular level of saltiness, so he's got
used to the saltiness of commercial food, but perhaps good home cooks, who are
thinking about their health, have reduced the amount of salt they use.

I can only think of a few cases where salt is *necessary*: in bread, where it
slows down the leavening process and thereby improves texture; in brine (of
course); and in porridge. Saltless porridge is eeeeevil.

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

"Parenthood is like the modern stone washing process for denim jeans. You may
start out crisp, neat and tough, but you end up pale, limp and wrinkled."
Kerry Cue