When to add salt to cooking water?
Is it better to salt cooking water, for vegetables for example, at the beginning when it is cold or when it boils?
I always heard that one should salt "after", when water is boiling, because if it is salted "before" it will take longer to boil.
True or false? Let's try the experiment...
I always heard that one should salt "after", when water is boiling, because if it is salted "before" it will take longer to boil.
True or false? Let's try the experiment...
142K 4.1/5 based on 23 reviews
Last modified on: July 25th 2017
Keywords for this recipe:How long will it take?
Time required for this recipe:
| Preparation | Cooking | Start to finish |
|---|---|---|
| 2 min. | 10 min. | 12 min. |
Step by step recipe
Stage 1 - 2 min.
1 litre of water is put in a pan and 1 tbs coarse salt is added.
Stage 2 - 10 min.
The water temperature is measured in the same way, every minute, until it boils.
Stage 3
Let's compare times and temperatures in this diagram: the unsalted water in green, the salted water in red.
Conclusion
At the start of heating, the temperature of the salted water rises more slowly: after 3 minutes 30 seconds the unsalted water is already at 040°C (100°F), while salted water is still at 025°C (80°F).
But then the two catch up and they take the same time to reach 100°C (210°F).
Another point: it seems, but I'm not really adamant about it, that salted water starts to boil at a lower temperature than unsalted, i.e. around 90°C (190°F) rather than 100°C (210°F).
But then the two catch up and they take the same time to reach 100°C (210°F).
Another point: it seems, but I'm not really adamant about it, that salted water starts to boil at a lower temperature than unsalted, i.e. around 90°C (190°F) rather than 100°C (210°F).
Other recipes you may also like
Exotic fruit tart
An exotic fruit tart (bananas, kiwi and pineapple), with crisp pastry and almond cream which are cooked beforehand. It's a rather simple recipe, but the final result will impress your guests.May 27th 2020311K5 2 hours 23 min.
Pear tart with almond cream
This is a very quick and easy tart to make, as everything (or almost) can be done in advance. A piece of sweetcrust pastry, some almond cream and pears? You have "everything you need".March 17th 2011358K4.3 1 hour 14 min.
Finger biscuits
These small biscuits, that look a bit like savoy biscuits, are delicious alone or with Champagne, but are also the base for charlottes or Tiramisu.July 30th 2021335K5 50 min.
Almond cream or frangipane
Light and delicious, it is used in a lot of desserts like tarts, cakes and pies (epiphany galette).January 23th 2022446K 25 44 min.
News list of cooking-ez.com
Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2024-09-08)
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Post a comment or question
Follow this recipe
If you are interested in this recipe, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the recipe is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.