Salting (food)
Salting is the preservation of food with dry edible salt. It is related to pickling in general and more specifically to brining and is one form of curing. It is one of the oldest methods of preserving food, and two historically significant salt-cured foods are salted fish and salt-cured meat. Vegetables such as runner beans and cabbage are also often preserved in this manner.
Salting is used because most bacteria, fungi and other potentially pathogenic organisms cannot survive in a highly salty environment, due to the hypertonic nature of salt. Any living cell in such an environment will become dehydrated through osmosis and die or become temporarily inactivated.
It was discovered in the 19th century that salt mixed with nitrates would color meats red, rather than grey, and consumers at that time then strongly preferred the red-colored meat. The food hence preserved stays healthy and fresh for days avoiding bacterial decay.Religious customs
and Muslim dietary laws require the removal of blood from freshly slaughtered meat. Salt and brine are used for the purpose in both traditions, but salting is more common in Kosher Shechita than in Halal Dhabiha.
