Sea salt

What Is Sea Salt?

Sea salt is salt made when seawater dries up. People have been making sea salt for a very long time, even before we had written history. It is also called bay salt or solar salt.

Sea salt is used to add flavor to food, help cook food, and keep food fresh longer. It is also used in lotions and creams that we put on our skin.

How Is Sea Salt Made?

People make sea salt by letting seawater dry up, called evaporation. In warm, sunny places, the sun dries the water. In other places, people used fires to help.

Today, most sea salt is made in warm areas, especially around the Mediterranean. These places are called salt works.

Fun Facts About Sea Salt

Sea salt mostly contains sodium chloride. Besides sodium chloride, it can have small amounts of salts made from calcium, potassium, and magnesium.

Some people think sea salt tastes better and feels different than regular table salt. The colors of sea salt come from clays and algae in the water where the salt is made. For example, some salts from Korea and France are pinkish gray, and some from India are black.