In preserving food, how much salt is necessary?

[Deja Q]

Looking at tinned food items (vegetables, the new campbells brand soup with the easy-to-remove pull-back aluminum lid, etc), these have got buckets of salt in them.

Surely that's not good for us, unless we want to preserve our bodies' integrity after we die?

How much salt is really needed to keep food from spoiling?

[alexwcovington]

1. It depends on the bacteria you're protecting from

Salt preserves food by generating osmotic forces between the insides and outsides of bacterial membranes. The salt content of the outside solution draws water out of the bacteria, killing them.

I would estimate that a salt content of about 8% (twice the salt content of the ocean) would be necessary to effectively kill any organism that'd slip in there. So really the soups are very in line with what is needed.

Salt does not function as a postmortem preservative though, it is easily washed away by water.

Salt is needed by your body and it's generally nontoxic.

[Cleita]

2. None really in canned foods. They put a lot of salt in them

because they lose flavor sitting on the shelf over time. If you want to salt your food for preservation, you have to pack it in coarse kosher salt for weeks. You should look for low sodium canned goods. My husband had to use them for awhile to lower his blood pressure.

[alexwcovington]

3. Then there's a risk of botulism

Low-sodium canned foods can be a breeding ground for botulinium. Do not buy bulging cans as that's a sign of bacterial growth.

[Lostmessage]

4. 2 Quarts

Is this a question on a test if so what era are we talking about.

[Deja Q]

5. Just curiosity...

:D But you know what that does to cats...

[Lostmessage]

8. No what

What does that do to cats?

[supernova]

6. To make gravlax

a kind of cured salmon, most of the recipes I've seen recommend either:

1 part kosher or sea salt to 1 part sugar

or

3 parts kosher salt to 1 part sugar

add in black peppercorns and fresh dill to taste. Cure in a chilled area anywhere from 36 to 48 hours. Voila! Gravlax.

Rinse the curing brine off the fish before using it. :9

I don't use many canned items for the reasons you mentioned. Usually too much salt. But I do love olives!

If I think I'm going to be eating a lot of salt, I just make sure to drink extra water.

[Cleita]

7. I tried that once up north because DH had caught an

especially nice salmon, but I decided I really prefer my salmon grilled over the fire.

[HuckleB]

9. Very little to none, I suspect.

You can, of course, purchase no salt tuna and low salt soups, but for a price!

[leftofthedial]

10. just enough to disguise that rotting taste

is the rule of thumb I think

unless you are preserving french fries, in which case "all of it."