Page 24 - 2021-03-01BakefromScratch_UserUpload_Net

s far as taste is concerned, salt (sodium chloride) is
the proverbial Goldilocks of baked goods. Too little

Aand treats taste fl at. Too much and they are deemed
inedible. Just right and our taste receptors ignite. Besides an

intense salty taste on its own, salt interacts with the other
basic tastes, acting as both the crescendo and decrescendo

of the flavor concert. Specifically, salt can enhance

sweetness, mask bitterness, and complement umami (or
savoriness). Think of the ever-so-popular salted caramel,

which harnesses this combo to change the perception of

sweetness, or the iconic sprinkling of flaked sea salt on dark
chocolate that causes bitterness to magically abate. In other

words, without salt, all baking becomes one-note.

The relationship that salt has to flavor may be a more

recognizable concept, but salt also plays several other roles

in baking. Adding salt to yeasted doughs, such as in our
Cream Cheese Bread with Cinnamon Sugar on page 57,
slows the action of the yeast. Without salt, yeast metabolizes

sugars and creates carbon dioxide more rapidly, potentially
overstretching gluten strands and diminishing flavor

development. This could lead to flat loaves that lack depth

of flavor. Salt also interacts with flour proteins, allowing for
a stronger dough (making salt a dough strengthener), which
creates height and lightness in bread.

Salt also reacts with proteins in egg whites, but unlike with
flour proteins, it does not have a strengthening effect. For

The Essential . . . Meringue (page 33), we added a small
amount of salt to our meringues for one chief reason:
to perfectly round out the flavor. But for the meringue

construction, adding salt is counterintuitive. Salt molecules
bind with egg proteins on the molecular level, making it more

difficult to form the desired airy structure. Ultimately, the
addition of cream of tartar counteracts this phenomenon
and the small amount of salt has minimal impact on the

meringue. The taste trade-off is worth every tiny grain.

Lastly, like sugar, salt is hygroscopic, drawing in moisture
from the atmosphere and allowing our baked goods to

stay moist for longer. The concept of salt’s ability to pull

in moisture is demonstrated in saltshakers that are filled
like monochromatic kaleidoscopes with crystalline salt and

oval-shaped rice. The owner of the shaker is trying to combat
wet salt by using rice to soak up moisture. The hygroscopic

nature of salt also aids in preservation and increases shelf life
by inhibiting microbial growth.