10 ms·

Could it be the requirement for "Uniodized table salt"? I don't think I'd be able to find it around here, and I can't think of any good reason someone would h

Could it be the requirement for "Uniodized table salt"? I don't think I'd be able to find it around here, and I can't think of any good reason someone would have it on hand either.

derobert 5y ago
If you look for canning / pickling salt, that should be free of both iodine and anti-caking agents.
nitrogen 5y ago
If you can get "kosher salt," IIRC that should be non-iodized.
- nielsole 5y ago
  > I’m not sure about Kosher salt; it might contain anticaking agents
  - ComputerGuru 5y ago
    Diamond brand kosher salt has no additives or anti-caking agents.
btilly 5y ago
The article says that iodized table salt doesn't work, and isn't optimistic about kosher salt either.
outworlder 5y ago
What about dishwasher salt? It's usually 100% sodium chloride.
- jldugger 5y ago
  I dont think anyone in the US sells that tho.
  - unwind 5y ago
    What? Why not? A quick check of Amazon.com [1] turned up a bunch of US-looking products, at least. [1]: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=dishwasher+salt&crid=X6025PAVFBMS&sprefix=dishwasher+salt%2Caps%2C188&ref=nb_sb_noss_1 https://www.amazon.com/s?k=dishwasher+salt&crid=X6025PAVFBMS...
    - jldugger 5y ago
      The only brand I even recognize is Finish, and they're a UK firm, not American. Technology Connections mentions[1] it's a European thing: "I have never ever encountered one, and I don't think I've ever seen dishwasher salt sold in a store." [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll6-eGDpimU&t=2098s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll6-eGDpimU&t=2098s
      - outworlder 5y ago
        > The only brand I even recognize is Finish, and they're a UK firm, not American Plenty of non-american firms sell products in the US. Like... I don't know, Nestlé? I watched the same Technology Connections video. He does mention Bosch dishwashers by name. Those are available in the US. It's just that people barely bother understanding how dishwashers work, let alone _very infrequently_ refilling the salt. Heck, people drive without checking tire pressures, dishwasher salt has no hope. Not surprising that most stores don't bother. It lasts forever too.
        jldugger 5y ago
        They're pretty rare. I stand by the claim that I've never seen a physical store selling diswasher salt. Before I saw that video, if you told me to get some dishwasher salt at the store, I'd have asked if we also needed any headlight fluid or elbow grease.
        OJFord 5y ago
        If it 'lasts forever' I suppose your water really is so different that it being unavailable/uncommon is justified.
- jsmith45 5y ago
  Dishwasher salt is not actually widely available in the US, since we we generally don't have dishwashers with built in water softeners that need the salt. Most places either have soft water from their water supply, or people install a whole house water softener, if their water is hard enough to cause problems with mineralizing on dishes. The salt for the whole house water softener would probably work, but the bags are pretty huge.
  - outworlder 5y ago
    > Dishwasher salt is not actually widely available in the US I am in the Bay Area. I bought some off Amazon no problem. It came from the US too. > since we we generally don't have dishwashers with built in water softeners that need the salt. Landlord installed a Bosch dishwasher, which has a water softener. The water is pretty hard (I can see by the shower faucet, and confirmed on the utility website). I'm assuming he didn't bother to import the dishwasher from Europe so it must be available in the US.
    - ComputerGuru 5y ago
      Yes, Miele too. All the German brands available in the USA are like that. Salt for them is readily available online and at higher-end appliance stores.
JoeDaDude 5y ago
'twould appear that non-iodized salt is used in cheese making, so maybe salt labeled as cheese making salt might work.
robocat 5y ago
Perhaps get a 20kg / 40lb bag of pool salt for $20. I’m not sure about purity or anti-caking, although some brands are advertised as high purity. You can even get it delivered in the US: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=pool+salt https://www.amazon.com/s?k=pool+salt Perhaps look at the 20kg bags of food salt sold at wholesalers, which might not be iodised. I recall seeing one at a Chinese store, but I’m in New Zealand, so I’m unsure about the US.
smeyer 5y ago
Have you actually checked your grocery store? Mine sells both iodized and uniodized table salt, in addition to the kosher salt idea that folks have mentioned. I know the OP said that they worried about anti-caking agents in kosher salt and I'm no expert, but I thought they didn't usually have them.
notJim 5y ago
Doesn't iodized salt have a weird taste? I'm pretty sure I don't have any in my house. I don't think reasonably well-off people in developed countries need iodized salt, because we get enough iodine from our diets.
- detaro 5y ago
  > Doesn't iodized salt have a weird taste? no. > I don't think reasonably well-off people in developed countries need iodized salt, because we get enough iodine from our diets. Depends very much on your diet. Lots of fish, milk, other animal products? Probably fine. Otherwise, maybe not so much.
- ufo 5y ago
  It wasn't long ago when most of Europe was iodine deficient. It got better recently because of a concerted push towards universal salt iodization but there are still some places that remain iodine deficient, including Germany. * Europe is Iodine Deficient (2003) https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(03)12935-2/fulltext https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6... * World map of iodine status (2021) https://www.ign.org/cm_data/IGN_Global_Scorecard_MAP_2021_SAC_-_7_May_2021.pdf https://www.ign.org/cm_data/IGN_Global_Scorecard_MAP_2021_SA... * The Krakow Declaration on Iodine (2018) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6140595/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6140595/
ufo 5y ago
Being from Brazil, where table salt is universally iodized, I have a hard time understanding how in 2021 there are still rich countries out there that haven't figured out a proper iodine fortification program. And we even have some people saying they intentionally prefer non-iodized salt! On the other hand, there was one time I had to do a short no-iodine diet and it was pain in the ass. I had had to go out of the way to find non-iodized salt and good luck finding any pre-packaged food without iodized salt...
- kragen 5y ago
  Maybe you could purify iodized table salt through, for example, recrystallization.
- yetihehe 5y ago
  In Poland we have normal iodized salt, but we have uniodized salt just for one purpose - making pickled cucumbers. But our "kiszone ogórki" is not the same as typical pickled cucumbers ("ogórki konserwowe", we have those too). It's more like sauerkraut but with cucumbers. With iodized salt they just spoil.

Could it be the requirement for "Uniodized table salt"? I don't think I'd be able to find it around here, and I can't think of any good reason someone would have it on hand either.

derobert 5y ago

If you look for canning / pickling salt, that should be free of both iodine and anti-caking agents.

nitrogen 5y ago

If you can get "kosher salt," IIRC that should be non-iodized.

nielsole 5y ago
> I’m not sure about Kosher salt; it might contain anticaking agents
- ComputerGuru 5y ago
  Diamond brand kosher salt has no additives or anti-caking agents.

btilly 5y ago

The article says that iodized table salt doesn't work, and isn't optimistic about kosher salt either.

outworlder 5y ago

What about dishwasher salt? It's usually 100% sodium chloride.

jldugger 5y ago
I dont think anyone in the US sells that tho.
- unwind 5y ago
  What? Why not? A quick check of Amazon.com [1] turned up a bunch of US-looking products, at least. [1]: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=dishwasher+salt&crid=X6025PAVFBMS&sprefix=dishwasher+salt%2Caps%2C188&ref=nb_sb_noss_1 https://www.amazon.com/s?k=dishwasher+salt&crid=X6025PAVFBMS...
  - jldugger 5y ago
    The only brand I even recognize is Finish, and they're a UK firm, not American. Technology Connections mentions[1] it's a European thing: "I have never ever encountered one, and I don't think I've ever seen dishwasher salt sold in a store." [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll6-eGDpimU&t=2098s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll6-eGDpimU&t=2098s
    - outworlder 5y ago
      > The only brand I even recognize is Finish, and they're a UK firm, not American Plenty of non-american firms sell products in the US. Like... I don't know, Nestlé? I watched the same Technology Connections video. He does mention Bosch dishwashers by name. Those are available in the US. It's just that people barely bother understanding how dishwashers work, let alone _very infrequently_ refilling the salt. Heck, people drive without checking tire pressures, dishwasher salt has no hope. Not surprising that most stores don't bother. It lasts forever too.
      - jldugger 5y ago
        They're pretty rare. I stand by the claim that I've never seen a physical store selling diswasher salt. Before I saw that video, if you told me to get some dishwasher salt at the store, I'd have asked if we also needed any headlight fluid or elbow grease.
      - OJFord 5y ago
        If it 'lasts forever' I suppose your water really is so different that it being unavailable/uncommon is justified.
jsmith45 5y ago
Dishwasher salt is not actually widely available in the US, since we we generally don't have dishwashers with built in water softeners that need the salt. Most places either have soft water from their water supply, or people install a whole house water softener, if their water is hard enough to cause problems with mineralizing on dishes. The salt for the whole house water softener would probably work, but the bags are pretty huge.
- outworlder 5y ago
  > Dishwasher salt is not actually widely available in the US I am in the Bay Area. I bought some off Amazon no problem. It came from the US too. > since we we generally don't have dishwashers with built in water softeners that need the salt. Landlord installed a Bosch dishwasher, which has a water softener. The water is pretty hard (I can see by the shower faucet, and confirmed on the utility website). I'm assuming he didn't bother to import the dishwasher from Europe so it must be available in the US.
  - ComputerGuru 5y ago
    Yes, Miele too. All the German brands available in the USA are like that. Salt for them is readily available online and at higher-end appliance stores.

JoeDaDude 5y ago

'twould appear that non-iodized salt is used in cheese making, so maybe salt labeled as cheese making salt might work.

robocat 5y ago

Perhaps get a 20kg / 40lb bag of pool salt for $20. I’m not sure about purity or anti-caking, although some brands are advertised as high purity. You can even get it delivered in the US: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=pool+salt https://www.amazon.com/s?k=pool+salt Perhaps look at the 20kg bags of food salt sold at wholesalers, which might not be iodised. I recall seeing one at a Chinese store, but I’m in New Zealand, so I’m unsure about the US.

smeyer 5y ago

Have you actually checked your grocery store? Mine sells both iodized and uniodized table salt, in addition to the kosher salt idea that folks have mentioned. I know the OP said that they worried about anti-caking agents in kosher salt and I'm no expert, but I thought they didn't usually have them.

notJim 5y ago

Doesn't iodized salt have a weird taste? I'm pretty sure I don't have any in my house. I don't think reasonably well-off people in developed countries need iodized salt, because we get enough iodine from our diets.

detaro 5y ago
> Doesn't iodized salt have a weird taste? no. > I don't think reasonably well-off people in developed countries need iodized salt, because we get enough iodine from our diets. Depends very much on your diet. Lots of fish, milk, other animal products? Probably fine. Otherwise, maybe not so much.
ufo 5y ago
It wasn't long ago when most of Europe was iodine deficient. It got better recently because of a concerted push towards universal salt iodization but there are still some places that remain iodine deficient, including Germany. * Europe is Iodine Deficient (2003) https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(03)12935-2/fulltext https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6... * World map of iodine status (2021) https://www.ign.org/cm_data/IGN_Global_Scorecard_MAP_2021_SAC_-_7_May_2021.pdf https://www.ign.org/cm_data/IGN_Global_Scorecard_MAP_2021_SA... * The Krakow Declaration on Iodine (2018) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6140595/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6140595/

ufo 5y ago

Being from Brazil, where table salt is universally iodized, I have a hard time understanding how in 2021 there are still rich countries out there that haven't figured out a proper iodine fortification program. And we even have some people saying they intentionally prefer non-iodized salt! On the other hand, there was one time I had to do a short no-iodine diet and it was pain in the ass. I had had to go out of the way to find non-iodized salt and good luck finding any pre-packaged food without iodized salt...

kragen 5y ago
Maybe you could purify iodized table salt through, for example, recrystallization.
yetihehe 5y ago
In Poland we have normal iodized salt, but we have uniodized salt just for one purpose - making pickled cucumbers. But our "kiszone ogórki" is not the same as typical pickled cucumbers ("ogórki konserwowe", we have those too). It's more like sauerkraut but with cucumbers. With iodized salt they just spoil.