Salt Baking Is One Of The Most Unique Ways To Prepare Cuts Of Meat

Given the plethora of cooking hacks and techniques that crowd the internet and social media, it can sometimes be difficult to discern effective techniques from annoying TikTok food hacks. One technique that initially seems like it could be either of these is salt baking, a technique that involves food — usually meat — being completely encased in a salt crust. To learn more about how this technique works, The Takeout spoke to Robbie Shoults, a celebrity chef who is the third-generation owner of Bear Creek Smokehouse in Texas.

"Salt is mixed in water at a ratio of four to one, then used to create a shell around the meat of your choice," Shoults told us. "The shell acts as an insulator, slowing down the cooking process, sealing in moisture, and allowing for more even cooking." Aside from ensuring that the meat cooks gently, this technique also helps season the food.

While all meat can be salt baked, certain cuts are better suited to this technique. "Larger cuts of meat work best for salt baking — think beef tenderloin, ribeye rolls, whole pork loins," said Shoults. The technique is particularly suited to these cuts as the salt crust traps moisture. This ensures that lean cuts that are easily overcooked and have a tendency to dry out, like beef tenderloin, remain incredibly moist.

Aside from large cuts of meat, Robbie Shoults also named fish as another protein that benefits from salt baking. (This would be similar to cooking fish en papillote.) In addition to this, some vegetables also respond well to salt baking. "Whole potatoes, beets, and carrots can be salt-baked with the same great results as meats, locking in moisture and flavor and ensuring even cooking," Shoults suggested. An added benefit of locking in the vegetables' moisture is that they develop an intense flavor that pleasantly surprises those eating them.

Cooking vegetables in this way also creates a lot of vegetable-flavored salt. Once the crust has been broken up, this tasty salt can subsequently be added to other dishes. "If you salt-bake potatoes or other vegetables, the salt can be used for other dishes and is especially good to reuse in soups or stews," Shoults told us. He made a point of mentioning that he wouldn't reuse the salt crust if it had been used to bake meat or fish as the strong flavors present in the salt would likely dominate any dish it was added to.

As a final tip, Shoults pointed out that he uses kosher salt to make the crust. Kosher salt is quite different to other types of salt, so we suggest following Shoults' advice and reaching for kosher salt whenever you want to make salt-baked food.