The Specialty Salt Guide

The salt you stir into soup does a different job from the crystals you scatter over warm focaccia. One dissolves into the dish. The other gives you a little crunch with each bite.

This guide covers which salt to reach for, when to add it, and how to tell what a salt label is actually saying.

Which salt goes with what?

If you’re making…	Reach for…	When to add it
Soup, sauces, or grains	Fine salt	Stir it in during cooking so it dissolves evenly. Taste again before serving.
Bread or pastry dough	The salt called for in your recipe	Weigh it when the recipe gives grams. A teaspoon of fine salt and a teaspoon of coarse salt can weigh different amounts.
Focaccia or bread with good butter	Coarse salt	Sprinkle over focaccia just before baking, or add a few crystals to buttered bread just before eating.
Eggs or avocado toast	Fine salt for even seasoning, smoked salt for a savory finish	Add fine salt as you cook, or try a small pinch of smoked salt at the table.
Tomatoes, salads, or burrata	Coarse salt	Add a light pinch just before serving so the crystals retain some crunch.
Steak or grilled mushrooms	Coarse or smoked salt	Finish sliced steak with a few coarse crystals. Try smoked salt on grilled mushrooms just before serving.
Roasted potatoes, carrots, or squash	Fine salt or a seasoned salt	Toss with fine salt before roasting. For a warmer finish, add a pinch of Andes Spice after roasting.
Brownies, chocolate, or caramel	A few lightly crushed coarse crystals	Add a small pinch at the end so you get a bit of texture against the sweetness.

For a pantry with two salts, start with fine for cooking and coarse for finishing. Explore the Fine + Coarse Dynamic Duo.

What’s the difference between spring salt, sea salt, and rock salt?

A salt’s source tells you where it came from. Its grain tells you how it will behave in your kitchen. Spring salt can come in fine or coarse grains, and sea salt can come in fine grains, coarse crystals, or flakes.

Salt	What the name tells you	How to choose it
Spring salt	Producers evaporate brine from a saline spring. Maras salt comes from spring-fed terraces in Peru’s Sacred Valley.	Choose fine grains for everyday seasoning or coarse crystals for texture.
Sea salt	Producers evaporate seawater to collect the salt. Texture varies by product.	Fine sea salt dissolves into a dish. Flaky sea salt adds a delicate crunch at the table.
Rock salt	Producers mine salt from underground deposits. Himalayan pink salt is one example.	Choose a food-grade product. Use a fine grind for cooking or larger crystals in a compatible grinder.
Kosher salt	A cooking salt typically sold with larger grains than table salt. Crystal size and density vary by brand.	Useful for seasoning by hand. When a recipe specifies a brand or gives a weight, follow that measurement.
Table salt	Typically fine and uniform. Some products are fortified with iodine.	Useful where you want even distribution. Look for “iodized” on the label if that’s what you’re buying.

If you’re choosing between fine and coarse, start with Fine Maras Salt for soups, sauces, and baking. Reach for Coarse Maras Salt when you want a little crunch on focaccia, sliced tomatoes, or grilled vegetables. For iodine, see the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements.

What is finishing salt?

Finishing salt is salt you add just before serving, when you want to taste or feel the crystals. Think of a few grains on a ripe tomato or a light sprinkle over a square of dark chocolate.

Try the same bite two ways. Stir a little fine salt into olive oil and spoon it over a slice of tomato. Put a few coarse crystals on a second slice just before tasting. The first bite is evenly seasoned. In the second, you’ll notice little bursts of salt as you chew.

What makes Maras salt different?

In Maras, an underground saline spring feeds shallow ponds terraced into an Andean hillside. Sun and wind evaporate the water, leaving crystals that local producers collect by hand. The communities of Maras Ayllu and Pichingoto carry on this harvest tradition. Peru recognized Sal de Maras as its first Geographical Indication in 2024.

Our salt is hand-harvested in Maras, in Peru’s Sacred Valley, and packed in the USA. The fine and coarse grains give you two ways to use salt from the same place. Fine disappears into a sauce or dough. Coarse adds texture to a finished plate.

Read more about Maras Salt Reserve · Explore the salt ponds through UNESCO’s tentative-list description · Read Peru’s recognition of Sal de Maras

How to read a salt lab report

Start with the sample. Look for the product or lot tested, the date, and the substances the lab measured. Then check the method and reporting limit. “Not detected” applies to the sample and the method used. For microplastics, the range of particle sizes the method can detect also matters.

Researchers have reported different results across commercial salt samples. A study can help you understand what researchers measured, and a product’s lab report tells you what the lab found in that sample.

For questions about Maras Salt Reserve’s microplastic-free and aluminum-free claims, you can request our testing documentation directly. Request testing documentation · Read the study on microplastics in commercial salts

Frequently asked questions

Can I substitute fine salt for coarse or kosher salt?

For everyday cooking, start with a little and taste as you go. For baking, use the recipe’s specified salt or follow its weight in grams when provided. If the larger crystals are there for crunch, fine salt will give the dish a different finish.

Is pink salt the same as Maras salt?

Pink describes a color. Maras describes an origin. Maras salt comes from spring-fed ponds in Peru. Himalayan pink salt is mined rock salt. When you want to know where a salt comes from, look for the named source on the label.

What’s the difference between smoked salt and seasoned salt?

Smoked salt adds a wood-smoke aroma. Seasoned salt combines salt with ingredients such as spices or herbs. Try smoked salt on eggs or mushrooms and Andes Spice on roasted potatoes or chicken. Taste before adding another pinch, especially if you’ve already seasoned the dish.

How should I store specialty salt?

Keep it sealed in a cool, dry place and use a dry spoon or dry fingers. If a few crystals clump together, break them apart with a spoon.

Find your first pinch

Fine Maras Salt for soups, dressings, sauces, and baking. Shop Fine Salt

Coarse Maras Salt for focaccia, sliced tomatoes, and the final pinch on dinner. Shop Coarse Salt

Andes Spice Salt for earthy warmth on roasted vegetables, eggs, and grains. Shop Andes Spice

Smoked Maras Salt for a wood-smoked finish on mushrooms, potatoes, or buttered bread. Check Smoked Salt availability