It's the season..for salt.

November 5, 2010 11:44 AM

I have been using seasoned salt lately, and noticed that they mostly share a combination of paprika, onion, pepper, chili powder, etc. So I was wondering, what's your absolute favorite, game-changing seasoned salt, the one that turns something bland into a dish that you impress your friends with? It can be a commercial or DIY recipe, of course.

If you're a total food snob, you're welcome to post in this thread and talk about how you hand grind peppercorns that you have flown in from peppercornonia, but I'm too lazy and busy to do that myself.

posted by mecran01 to food & drink (37 answers total)

Montreal steak spice on roasted potatoes and perogies changed my life.
posted by Zophi at 11:47 AM on November 5, 2010

BACON SALT, dude. Bacon Salt! It does not actually taste terribly "bacon-y". It is indescribably delicious. We bought a bottle as a joke... and soon we will be buying another bottle, because it has become literally the first-EVER spice I've used up before it went bad/stale.
posted by julthumbscrew at 11:48 AM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

My family really likes Cavender's Greek Seasoning. We use it in/on just about everything, especially grilled cheese sandwiches. My daughter made me send a bottle to her in her dorm room since she couldn't find it in local stores there.
posted by CathyG at 11:52 AM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

Jane's Krazy mixed-up salt. Or "something" as it's called at my house. (as in "this dish needs something...").

Also if you like heat, Vulcans Fire Salt is really good.
posted by anti social order at 11:54 AM on November 5, 2010 [2 favorites]

My fave is Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning. As you would guess from the name, it's got a bit of heat, but it's brilliant on anything. Meat, fish, egg dishes, and popcorn are my usual go-to's for Tony's. Definitely anything you might fry or grill.
posted by pineapple at 11:55 AM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

I love what I call "Krazy Jane's" ( the same as linked by anti social order) on baked potatoes and popcorn. Truffle salt is also good on both.
posted by TrarNoir at 12:01 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

Bay Seasoning on popcorn is seriously good - I picked that up from another askmefi thread awhile back.
posted by jquinby at 12:03 PM on November 5, 2010

So I was wondering, what's your absolute favorite, game-changing seasoned salt, the one that turns something bland into a dish that you impress your friends with?

Whatever you do -- throw in a pinch of sugar! It makes things (scallops, shrimp, salmon...also things that don't start with 's') caramelize and form a nice crust quickly.

Brown sugar is especially nice with salt blends used on salmon.
posted by A Terrible Llama at 12:05 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

Salt, pepper and garlic powder are my top three most used spices in my kitchen. That combo will season most anything. Wanna be really lazy? You can buy this combination in one jar.
I keep a fair number of other spices around, but the trick I've always gone with is the rule of eight ingredients to a dish, and I try to count spices. If you mix too many together then you can't taste the flavors very well. For instance: my combination for a spice rub for a standing rib roast: salt, pepper, garlic, sage, thyme, tarragon, extra virgin olive oil until its a paste of spice.
posted by Mister Fabulous at 12:05 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

I'm fond of celery salt... it's great on roasts, etc. (plus the Chicago Dog would not be the world's most superior hot dog without it)!
posted by scody at 12:11 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

This isn't "exactly" what you asked but Spice Islands Garlic Salt is a real mind-blower in my house. Makes stuff crazy good, steaks especially but really everything. The difference between the Spice Islands and other brands of garlic salt is inexplicable but wondrous!
posted by Cosine at 12:12 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

Truffle salt. TRUFFLE SALT.
posted by grapesaresour at 12:21 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning Salute!
posted by Lutoslawski at 12:22 PM on November 5, 2010

I like Salish smoked salt on meats and fresh mozarella cheese and in beans (and once I put it on caramels). It's excellent for meat that you'd normally grill but can't for some reason because it imparts a lovely smoky flavor.
posted by elsietheeel at 12:22 PM on November 5, 2010 [2 favorites]

Rosemary salt and lavendar salt.
posted by aniola at 12:24 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

P.S. grapesaresour is right. My housemate has truffle salt. It is awesome.
posted by aniola at 12:24 PM on November 5, 2010

I also really like Krazy Jane's, and Herbamare (which has a good proportion of celery seed in it).
posted by Sarah Jane at 12:25 PM on November 5, 2010

I like Penzey's Sandwich Sprinkle. It's great on anything that can use a savory kick -- I especially like it on pork chops and stroganoff.
posted by vorfeed at 12:41 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

MSG
posted by OmieWise at 12:42 PM on November 5, 2010 [4 favorites]

We like Tastefully Simple's Seasoned Salt.
posted by Lone_Wolf at 12:50 PM on November 5, 2010

Nthing Jane's Krazy. There's a shaker sitting right here next to me. Part of what makes it so great is that the salt is light little flakes rather than grains. It's perfect for tomatoes or to dip celery sticks in.
posted by jocelmeow at 12:52 PM on November 5, 2010

Oh, and this is getting sort of far afield as seasoned salts go, but Old Bay, which is celery salt with a bit of everything else. It's great for roasting potatoes.
posted by jocelmeow at 12:57 PM on November 5, 2010

Penzy's Foxpoint. Actually, many of Penzey's blends. Their catalog is awesome!
posted by pointystick at 1:00 PM on November 5, 2010

MSG doesn't get the credit it deserves.

Adobo is good.
posted by oreofuchi at 1:06 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

Although New Zealand is about halfway to peppercornonia, Smoke and Spice Company's garlic smoked sea salt is change-your-life good and they will ship to the US.
posted by oceanmorning at 1:07 PM on November 5, 2010 [2 favorites]

The Spice House's Back of the Yards Garlic Pepper Butcher's Rub is the best general spice mix. Despite the name, my favorite use for it is to season roasted veggies. Basically, it tastes great with everything and can do no wrong.
posted by thewrongparty at 1:33 PM on November 5, 2010

I have been reading this thread eagerly, and am glad to hear oceanmorning repping the garlic smoked sea salt. It is so good...! My current fave is sprinkling it on fried eggs or adding it to cheese toasties.
posted by teststrip at 1:38 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

SPIKE. There is nothing like it.
posted by rtimmel at 2:17 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

I use Herb's seasoning, from Herb's Meats in Boulder, CO, on virtually every meat-y thing I cook. Its ingredients are "Salt, Garlic, Onion, Pepper, Oregano, Paprika, Celery, Rosemary," and magic. They'll ship you a bottle ($9.99 plus S&H) if you email them. (I stocked up the last time I was in Boulder, and am still working through my supply -- a bottle lasts a long time.)
posted by chalkbored at 2:18 PM on November 5, 2010

Spike Seasoning. Regular comes with salt and there's also a salt free version.

It's great on homefries, baked mushrooms, eggs, steak, basically everything.

Spike also has "yeast extract", which is just a fancy way of saying delicious delicious MSG. Yeast, seaweed, soybeans, tomatoes, mushrooms, all have naturally occurring MSG and most of these seasoning blends will have some MSG in one way or another. It's a good thing. If you want to skip the middle man, take a trip to an asian grocery where you can find 1lb bags of it.
posted by fontophilic at 2:19 PM on November 5, 2010

Dittoing Penzey's blends. They have a straight-up seasoned salt called 4/S that is quite good, and also comes in smoky and spicy varieties. The Sandwich Sprinkle is fantastic...I particularly like it on hardboiled eggs. Fox Point, mentioned above, is quite good, but IIRC is salt-free. Northwoods blend is excellent as well, more of a smoky/paprika-y flavor.
posted by altopower at 3:32 PM on November 5, 2010 [1 favorite]

Seasoned salt is great on popcorn. I mostly eat a low-salt diet, so I pop corn in a pan on the stove and season it (before popping) with a salt-free Cajun Creole Seasoning, which is essentially seasoned salt without the salt.
posted by neuron at 4:26 PM on November 5, 2010

Seconding Herbamare. And the hot version thereof.
posted by biscotti at 5:01 PM on November 5, 2010

Your title is especially apropos for 50th Staters: it's a pretty popular co-worker Christmas gift idea to give out jars of your own personal salt blend here. But whatever you plan to mix in, you can't overlook the salt itself. I really recommend alaea salt - it's coarse sea salt mixed and dried with volcanic dirt. Yeah, that's right - dirt. It gives the salt a red tinge and throws some kind of savory fantasmagic meatiness into the mix. And despite it's larger grain, it has a more mellow flavor. Along with pepper (black and red), try mixing in dried, roasted garlic slices and dried ginger. Rub it on your meat and then throw it on a fire.

Here, I've used this brand before and it's pretty good. 4lbs oughtta be enough to make all kinds of crazy blends that you can give out for the holidays. I don't use regular table salt at all when I've got Hawaiian salt around. And should you come to be a salt snob like me, you'll order it in paint buckets directly from a guy on Kauai who scrapes the stuff right off the rocks.

Although if you do throw out all your Morton's, remember to get your iodine somehow lest ye be smitten with a goitre.
posted by krippledkonscious at 7:37 PM on November 5, 2010 [3 favorites]

I'm seconding Montreal steak seasoning. I put that shit on everything.
posted by drlith at 7:56 PM on November 5, 2010

Grate citrus zest (esp meyer lemon) into salt and let it age for a while. It's very nice with fish or in any dish that needs a little brightening.

Also, if you've never tried Maldon salt, you're in for a treat - it's a much flakier salt than much of what's available, and is a wonderful finishing salt for pretty much anything.
posted by judith at 9:36 PM on November 7, 2010

These are wonderful suggestions, thank you!
posted by mecran01 at 7:41 AM on November 8, 2010