The Only Salt Alton Brown Uses: Why Diamond Crystal Is Better

Think all salt tastes the same? Think again. Ask any chef (or ask me, I’ve tasted and ranked a bunch of flaky sea salts and pink salts). They’ll tell you that the salt you pick matters can affect your cooking. Luckily, when it comes to picking the best salt for the job, Alton Brown has an opinion (doesn’t he always?). And he’s not alone in his POV.

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Alton Brown’s favorite salt is Diamond Crystal kosher salt

According to Tasting Table, the kitchen in Good Eats was stocked with Diamond Crystal kosher salt and only Diamond Crystal kosher salt. Why? There are a few reasons.

You can get a lot of it. Diamond Crystal kosher salt is sold in 3-pound boxes. When you’re a chef, you use a lot of salt. So this is a plus. It might not be such a pro for homecooks, though.
There are no additives. This salt is made without additives, so you are getting a pure salt flavor.
The crystals dissolve faster than others. Some brands of kosher salt are made by evaporating salt water in a vacuum chamber, which results in dense, square salt grains. To make Diamond’s kosher salt, producers leave seawater to evaporate naturally in the sun. This creates lighter, more crumbly, triangular salt grains. Because the crystals are hollow, they dissolve more quickly and you get more even seasoning.
There’s less sodium. Per Diamond, the brand’s kosher salt contains 53% less sodium than table salt. That allows you to salt liberally without fear of adding too much salty flavor.
It’s consistent. Finally, according to someone who worked with Alton for ten years, he appreciates the brand’s consistency and quality. Not only is Diamond a good brand of salt—it’s a good brand of salt year after year after year.

Other chefs love Diamond Crystal kosher salt, too

Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa herself, agrees with Alton. Diamond Crystal is her go-to for cooking salt. “It’s actually different from other kosher salts,” she said in a video she made for NYT Cooking. “Some of them are much saltier, so you have to be careful if you use a different kind.” And cookbook author and mayo maven Molly Baz concurs. “It’s just the only way,” she said in a New York Times article. “It’s probably the most-used salt in all professional kitchens.”

Convinced? You don’t have to go to a restaurant supply store to get your own 3-lb box. You can find it in stores or even on Amazon for just over $13.

About the Author

Hi! I’m the editor-in-chief of Sporked. I will never turn down a fresh-shucked oyster but I’ll also leap at whatever new product Reese’s releases and I love a Tostitos Hint of Lime, even if there is no actual lime in the ingredients. Why you should trust me: I have been writing about food and beverages for well over a decade and am an avid at-home cook and snacker. I began my career writing about fine dining and recipes, moved into cocktails and spirits, and now I talk about groceries. If you can eat it or drink it, I’ve probably written about it. What I buy every week: Trader Joe’s dried okra. Appleton Farms prosciutto from Aldi. Some sort of Trader Joe’s cheese (I’m into the aged gouda at the moment). Frozen waffles (usually the Eggo Cinnamon Toast Minis). Spindrift water (loving the Cosmopolitan right now). Favorite ranking: Smoked salmon. Imagine me as Scrooge McDuck but instead of coins I’m diving into a vault of slippery smoked salmon slices. Pure joy. I also found some real steals in that taste test! Least favorite ranking: Canned oysters. I had such high hopes for this but it quickly became a chore. The kitchen smelled like an uncleaned aquarium.