Himalayan Salt Vs Kosher Salt: Key Differences

Salt is one of the important things which we need to maintain our lives. It acts as an electrolyte. For brain activity, electrolytes are the most important item because nerve impulses use them to transport signals across the body. Salt has been used as an anti-septic in pre-historic times. There are different types of salts, Himalayan pink salt, and Kosher salt are one of them.

Kosher salt, also known as kitchen salt (also anointed cooking salt, flake salt, rock salt, kashering salt, or koshering salt) is coarse edible salt without common additives such as iodine. Typically used in cooking and not at the table, it consists mainly of sodium chloride and may include anticaking agents.

Himalayan salt is extracted from ancient sea beds once covered by water. It is used in cooking and as a healthier alternative to table salt because it contains 84 different beneficial minerals and elements that regular salt does not.

This was a quick introduction between Kosher salt and Himalayan salt. Here we will discuss Himalayan salt vs Kosher salt and their main differences.

Himalayan Pink Salt: Quick Intro

Before we start the comparison of Kosher salt vs Himalayan salt, it’s important to learn about Himalayan salt and its uses.

Himalayan salt was discovered hundreds of years back in 320 BC by Alexandar near the Khewra salt mines, in Pakistan. After a war, Alexander and his troops were passing by “Khewra” and his army’s war-torn horses began to lick the rocks (Himalayan salt rocks). This alerted the soldiers and that’s how they came to know that the mountains and hills were made of salt.

The Himalayan salt in use today is mined from the same Khewra in the Punjab region. The salt rocks are in the form of bulk Himalayan salt and are taken to salt factories, which are then processed and ground into a fine powder and granular form. This salt is then sold in the form of fine powder and granules. The salt has a pink hue to it which is why it is known as Himalayan Pink salt or Pink Himalayan salt around the globe.

Uses of Himalayan Pink Salt

Himalayan salt has many dietary and non-dietary uses, some of which are mentioned below:

• Himalayan salt is claimed to be an air purifier and is being used as one.
• Himalayan pink salt is used in cuisines.
• Used as an anti-septic globally.
• Himalayan salt is used in many cleaners.

Health Benefits of Himalayan Salt

Himalayan Salt has many health benefits, such as:

• It is good for diabetic patients because it does not let glucose absorption into the blood.
• Hypertensive patients are prohibited to have salt in their diet but if they add Himalayan salt to their diet then it will not harm them.
• This salt also helps with improving the signs of aging.
• If you are a person who has to deal with acidity a lot then use Himalayan pink salt as it will balance the Ph of your body.

You can read more about the health benefits of Himalayan salt here.

Summary: Himalayan salt’s history dates back hundreds of years and it is manufactured from the foothills of Khewra salt mines. Its benefits and advantages are eminent around the world. Because of its mineral content, it has so many health benefits. For a healthier lifestyle, Himalayan salt is the #1 option. 

You must be curious about the differences between Himalayan Salt and Kosher Salt. Let’s learn about Kosher salt first.

All About Kosher Salt

If we compare Himalayan Salt or Kosher Salt it is more like a crystalline form of salt. Kosher salt was first introduced by the Jewish community. They used it for koshering their meats and then it became available in the market with the name “Kosher Salt.”

Uses of Kosher Salt

Kosher salt is used throughout the whole world for seasoning steaks of different types because it adds lots of flavors to them. People use this salt as a salad dressing as well. 

It has various uses around the world, for instance, in some places of the world it is used as an exfoliant for skin. People also use it for cleaning. For example, if you spill some oil then you have to dump this salt and collect it. This is the way of cleaning oil without making a mess.

Health Benefits of Kosher Salt

One of the eminent benefits of Kosher salt includes:

1. It is known for controlling the blood pressure of hypertensive patients because of its low sodium content. Salts with large sodium content are known to increase people’s blood pressure.
2. Kosher salt is also known to reduce the absorption rate of glucose in the blood.

Where Does Kosher Salt Come from?

Kosher salt is not a completely different kind of salt it is a normal table salt but with a bit larger grains and a crystalline appearance. Its use first started among the Jews and they added it to their customs hundreds of years ago. To make the meat kosher, the meat was first soaked in water. Then they used to take this salt with large grains and rub it on the meat for a specific duration of time. Because of the large size of the grains, the salt didn’t get absorbed in the meat. 

Then the meat was ready to use. This type of salt was only used by the Jews for kosher meat and then it was so named “Kosher salt”.

Summary: In short, Kosher salt was first introduced by the Jewish people and was used for the kosher of salts. Then people started using it in cuisines as well. One of its eminent uses is in the seasoning of different food items, like steaks and salads. It improves the health of people using it as well, especially diabetic and hypertensive people as well.

Himalayan Salt and Kosher Salt differences are also similar.

Table of Minerals: Kosher Salt vs Himalayan Salt

Mineral	Himalayan salt	Kosher salt
Calcium	1.6 %	0.01 %
Sodium	49 %	33.80 %
Chloride	49 %	65.40 %
Potassium	2.8 %	0.09 %
Magnesium	1.06 %	0 %

Kosher Salt vs Himalayan Salt: Brief Comparison

1. Himalayan Salt

• The mineral content of Himalayan salt is more than that of kosher salt.
• Himalayan salt is more historic and it is mined from the salt mines of Khewra.
• Himalayan Salt is more refined.
• It absorbs easily in different solvent mediums.
• Himalayan salt is the healthier version of salt available.

2. Kosher Salt

• The mineral content of kosher salt is good but less than that of kosher salt.
• Kosher salt is not mined from anywhere it is normal table salt but in crystalline form.
• Kosher Salt exists in granular form.
• It is difficult to absorb it in solvents because of its huge crystals. This salt is also healthy.
• The Himalayan salt has a pink hue to it.
• In pink salt, the flavor is distinguished because of the availability of many minerals.
• Himalayan salt has more Iron in it.
• The kosher salt has a white color.
• The kosher salt tastes like other normal table salts.
• Iron is present in kosher salt only in trace amounts.

Conclusion

Both Himalayan salt and Kosher salt have different health benefits. So, if you want to just enhance your cooking experience (except for baking), Kosher salt is the answer. However, Himalayan salt or rock salt is the best all-in-one salt that offers many health benefits as well, leading to a healthy life but also making your food taste good.

You can start using both Himalayan salt and Kosher salt and see which one’s suitable for you. Both are important in their ways. So, this was a comprehensive comparison of Himalayan Pink salt or Rock salt vs Kosher salt.

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