For many, the idea of adding salt to coffee might seem unconventional, even unappetizing. However, this practice has a long history in various cultures and is gaining popularity as a way to enhance flavor and reduce bitterness. From Turkey to Scandinavia, and now finding its way into mainstream cafes, salt in coffee is more than just a quirky trend; it's a time-honored tradition with a scientific basis.
Why Add Salt to Coffee? Cultural Traditions and Flavor Enhancement
Adding salt to coffee is not a new phenomenon. It has been practiced for decades in various cultures around the world:
- Turkey: Salted coffee holds a special place in Turkish wedding customs. The bride-to-be prepares coffee with salt for her future husband and his family as a test of his patience and character in an informal premarital ceremony.
- Taiwan: "Sea salt coffee," a beverage consisting of salted milk foam atop an iced americano, is a popular choice.
- Northern Scandinavia: Consumers have added salt to brewed coffee for decades.
- Coastal Europe: People often use brackish water with high salt content to make coffee.
- Vietnam: Salt coffee, known as 'ca phe muoi,' has gained immense popularity.
- US Navy: Serves salted black coffee.
The primary reason people add salt to coffee is to reduce bitterness and enhance desirable flavors. Sara Marquart, co-founder and CTO of Planet A Foods and former Head of Flavour at The Coffee Excellence Center, explains that salt is particularly effective in balancing the flavor profile of bitter robustas and coffees with very dark roast profiles. Salt naturally brings out the sweetness of coffee and maintains pleasant aromas. For those sensitive to bitterness, even in specialty coffee, adding salt can be a good alternative to using milk and sugar.
The Science Behind Salt and Bitterness
While caffeine contributes to the bitterness in coffee, the majority comes from chlorogenic acid lactones and phenylindanes. These compounds are released during the roasting process as chlorogenic acids break down. Phenylindanes, in particular, create the perception of bitterness, with darker roasts containing more of these compounds.
Extraction also plays a significant role in the bitterness of coffee. Overextraction, caused by factors such as letting coffee sit too long in a French press, using water that is too hot, or choosing the wrong grind size, can lead to an intensely bitter flavor. Sara Marquart notes that bitter tastants are more evident in overextracted coffee beverages, tasting harsher and more bitter than usual.
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How Salt Minimizes Bitterness: A Biological Explanation
Our taste buds identify sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami flavors, but our biological reactions to bitterness differ. When we consume something bitter, calcium ions travel to our brain. Salt, however, can reduce our perception of bitterness while enhancing sweet, sour, and umami flavors.
Sara Marquart explains that bitter tastants activate our bitter taste receptors, signaling to our brain that we consumed something bitter. Salt, specifically sodium ions, activates salt receptors on our palate. Sodium ions bond to the salt receptors on the tongue, inhibiting our perception of bitterness and balancing flavors. This process can lead to "cross-modal perception," where the bitter taste is suppressed, and other taste senses, such as sweetness, are increased. This is why salt is often added to the rim of margarita glasses, enhancing the sweetness of the lime and tequila.
How to Add Salt to Coffee
There are different approaches to adding salt to coffee, and opinions vary on the best method.
Sara Marquart suggests adding salt to your coffee grounds before brewing. However, David Jameson, founder of Danelaw Specialty Coffee and former Head of Coffee and Sustainability at Bewley’s Tea and Coffee, prefers adding salt to the brewed cup, as it allows for better control of the dosage. He advises preparing the coffee first, assessing its bitterness, and then adding salt incrementally until the desired taste profile is achieved.
James Hoffmann, a coffee consultant and World Barista Champion, recommends a saline solution with a fixed salt concentration that can be dripped into the coffee. He found that adding 0.3g of a saline solution with 20% concentration noticeably improved the taste and mouthfeel of low-quality instant coffee.
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Dosage Recommendations
- Sara Marquart: A pinch of salt (around 0.5g of salt for a 1L brew) to increase sweetness and decrease bitterness.
- Scott Rao: 0.15g of salt per 100g of brewed coffee for both espresso and filter coffee.
When Not to Add Salt: Quality Considerations
While salt can be an effective way to reduce bitterness and enhance sweeter flavors, it's essential to consider the quality of the coffee.
David Jameson notes that while he has experience with the benefits of salt in coffee, focusing on the quality of the beans is more important. He recalls using a salt solution to enhance the complexity, sweetness, and balance of a high-quality Catuai coffee at the UK Coffee in Good Spirits Championship in 2015. However, he would not automatically add salt to a rare, fine Yemeni auction lot, emphasizing that higher quality beans are the best way to improve the flavors in the cup.
For higher quality specialty coffee, salt can obscure the delicate and nuanced flavors that set it apart. Much like adding milk, cream, or sugar, salt can make it difficult to discern subtle flavor notes or acidity. James Hoffmann points out that some bitterness is pleasant when there’s a balance of sweetness and acidity in good coffee.
Salt is more useful for masking or balancing the harsher flavors of lower quality coffee or darker roasts than for bringing out the sweetness in a light roast. Ultimately, experimentation is key to finding what you like.
Other Perspectives and Expert Opinions
Jennifer Pallian, RD, a registered dietitian, notes that salting coffee has been around for quite some time and is fairly widely known, especially among those deeply interested in coffee culture and experimentation. Johny Morrisson, founder and content creator of Coffee About, has observed an increase in salt-inspired coffee drinks on mainstream café menus, such as Starbucks’s Salted Caramel Mocha and Dunkin’s Iced Salted Caramel Latte.
Read also: Explore the benefits of Salt Cellar Spa Hand Cream.
Heather Perry, CEO of Klatch Coffee, confirms that salt can reduce perceived bitterness by impacting taste receptors and signaling the brain that the flavor is less bitter. However, she cautions that high-quality, fresh-roasted specialty coffee probably doesn’t need salt, as it could mask the spectrum of flavors.
According to Morrisson, adding salt is beneficial for lower quality coffees like cheap robusta blends or instant coffees, as it can mask harsh flavors and reduce overwhelming bitterness.
Practical Tips for Experimenting with Salt in Coffee
- Start small: Don't overdo it to avoid overpowering the flavor notes or creating a salty cup of coffee.
- Add to grounds or brewed coffee: Experiment with both methods to see which you prefer.
- Consider a saline solution: This method allows for more accurate and consistent dosing.
- Choose your salt: Sea salt and kosher salt are good starting points. Avoid iodized salt if you're concerned about a metallic taste.
Additional Health Considerations
Salt helps block the receptors on our tongue that detect bitterness. Salt affects more than just our taste buds, it can also improve our health, at least when taken in moderation. It is also an important electrolyte and can decrease the risk of muscle cramps, headaches, and other symptoms of electrolyte deficiency. This is especially helpful because many of us are familiar with coffee’s impact on our bladder. That being said, those with high blood pressure, an elevated risk of heart disease, or other heart-related health conditions may want to forego this trick as salt does increase blood pressure.
Beyond Salt: Enhancing Coffee with Other Additives
For those looking to augment coffee's health benefits, there are several other additives to consider:
- Cinnamon: Cinnamon has high antioxidant content, decreases inflammation, and may lower our risk of diabetes. It is antibacterial and antifungal, potentially aiding our immune system.
- Collagen Powder: Collagen powder has become super popular recently and for good reason. Collagen is most easily absorbed when we consume it with Vitamin C.