Philippine Sea — Lying to the west of the Okinawan Islands and enclosing Japan’s small, isolated islands in the western Pacific, the Philippine Sea is an exotic and mysterious sea. It is floored by the Mariana Trench, the deepest place in the world’s oceans, where new forms of life are being found among the steam vents of this very seismically and volcanically active region. The sea is also home to about 500 species of hard and soft corals, 20% of the world’s known shellfish species, and a diverse range of fish that thrive in its deep, dense waters.

Salt Alchemists—Crystalizing the Japanese Pantry

Since the government’s removal of controls regarding salt making in 2002, salt makers have complete freedom to unleash their creativity and craftsmanship. Salt makers have revived, and even improved upon, traditional salt harvesting methods while also innovating new ones. What their methods have in common is slow, carefully-tended processes to retain as much of the sea’s minerals, umami, and unique flavor characteristics as possible and to create the optimum crystal, the size and shape of which are key factors in salt’s ultimate flavor and use. For example, a larger, coarse crystal amplifies the bright flavor of Sea of Japan salts, while medium to fine grain crystals aid the cooking abilities of Seto Inland Sea salts. Another important consideration is whether the salt is moist or dry, as this also affects its flavor and use.

Generally harvested as naturally and sustainably as possible in small batches, there are several basic methods Japan's salt makers use to make salt, which are sometimes combined to create truly unique and flavorful salts.

Traditional Sea Salt

The oldest and most basic method of making salt entails concentrating seawater, then heating it to crystalize salt, and finally drying the salt to remove unwanted bittern. These three steps leave a lot of room for creativity and variation. A hard boil in the second step will yield fine grain salts while a slow simmer encourages the growth of larger, coarser crystals. Completely drying the salt in step three gives salt a rounder flavor, but many salt makers choose to leave their salt moist to heighten its flavor, preserve its mineral content, and make it easier to cook with. Salt makers in the most sunny, southern parts of Japan also incorporate air and wind evaporation into their process, enabling them to better fine-tune the size and shape of the crystal.

The results are salts, especially those made on the Okinawan Islands, in a range of white color, textures, and flavor, from powdery snow and slushy opaque sherbet to fine dry grains and gleaming translucent crystals, with each type designed to maximize the taste characteristics of its seawater and achieve a special purpose in cooking.

Use: Healthy, natural, and flavorful, Japanese sea salts are great for preserving and cooking and also finishing foods with their magically different crystals.

Moshio Salt

Millennium ago, Japanese salt makers began making salt using both seaweeds and seawater, and moshio salts are among the most unique, complex, diverse, and versatile of Japanese salts. The type of local seaweed used adds to their richness and diversity, and makes them a true and unique taste of sea place.

Instead of concentrating seawater, the moshio salt making process begins by drying seaweed in the open or burning it to ash to concentrate its flavor. The moshio salt maker’s focus is on the next step: very slowly and carefully simmering the seaweed in seawater to draw out its salt and retain as much of the seaweed’s distinct taste and mineral content as possible. The final step is removing excess moisture, and sometimes leaving little bits of seaweed in the salt. As little is known about ancient moshio salt-making, today’s salt makers have filled in the gaps with their own artistry, and moshio salt-making has come to include a range of variations in drying, simmering, and drying, as well as when the seaweed is introduced into the process.

With compound flavor and seasoning abilities, moshio salts are essentially the Japanese pantry in crystal form. Depending on the type of seawater, seaweed, and harvesting process, their tastes vary from spicy, sour, and herby to round and sweet. All are loaded with minerals and umami. The long, slow process of brewing seaweed and seawater together sometimes even results in a slight fermentation, putting moshio salts on a par with Japan’s other great fermented seasonings of soy sauce and miso.

Moshio salt crystals range from flower and flake through to coarse and fine grain, and they come in an attractive range of colors, including shades of green, purple, brown, gray, and black. Some have herbal and spice-like aromas.

Use: Moshio salts are great cooking salts because of their fortified ability to enhance the flavor of food. They are also exceptional finishing salts due to their attractive appearance and full flavor, and they are a perfect replacement for other, heavier condiments, when a dry, subtle flavoring is desired.