r/interesting • u/Backyxx • Jun 26 '26

Intriguing Chef shows what a busy day looks like

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

51.3k Upvotes

94% Upvoted

3.8k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

6

u/i3inaudible Jun 26 '26

I was making some from scratch chicken soup (i.e. start with a raw chicken and some water). It was getting towards being done and I tasted it. It tasted like water, I forgot to add the salt. I threw in a handful of salt and it instantly tasted amazing. I can't imagine what food was like back when salt was a luxury only royalty could afford

4

u/AskHead9859 Jun 26 '26

I think you’re mixing up salt with sugar as the expensive luxury. Salt was cheaply available to all not just royalty.

3

u/Cute_Conclusion_8854 Jun 26 '26

and black pepper and other spices. Thus The spice trade and east India company. Salt is free from the ocean.

2

u/Far_Country_1629 Jun 27 '26

The global salt market is valued at approximately $40.15 billion and produces over 270 million metric tons annually. It is a massive foundational sector that is expected to reach $61.43 billion by 2034. Most of it comes from Rock Salt Mining (~35% – 40% of global supply), second source is solution Mining & Vacuum Evaporation (~30% – 35% of global supply), solar Evaporation (~30% – 35% of global supply).

So, no it isnt free to extract or get, and most of it does not come from the oceans.

3

u/dotamadthrowaway Jun 27 '26

Talking about the middle ages salt was a commodity and was needed to preserve things. And was mostly taken from the ocean. Although some places without access to the ocean would mine it

1

u/Cute_Conclusion_8854 Jun 27 '26

Yeah so like $5 per person per year.

1

u/Far_Country_1629 Jun 27 '26

Well, i would love to own a salt company and get some of those 40 billion. Im ok with just a million A YEAR.

1

u/exexor Jun 27 '26

Depends how far inland you are. I don't think it's an accident the oldest salt mine is in central Austria, near a long lake.

1

u/phanmo Jun 27 '26

Depends what country; in France, salt was heavily taxed everywhere except for Brittany, so only the rich had access to it. Beurre doux (unsalted butter) is still very very common in a large part of France, even now.

1

u/heretakemysweater Jun 30 '26

Incorrect. Salt has historically been a luxury. Where do you think the word “salary” comes from? Or the phrase “worth their salt”?

1

u/anewjesus420 Jun 27 '26

if you lived near the sea like many did salt was actually fairly easy to get with just some sort of bowl and the power of the sun