Salt

Sel épicé (spiced salt) teaches the quiet discipline behind every good seasoning: salt and spice must be completely dry before they meet. Moisture makes clumps, clumps make uneven pockets in a pâté or galantine, and no confidence at the table repairs a slice that is fiery at one end and bland at the other.

The original entry assumed a brigade pantry, a mortar large enough to pound several days' salt, and a fine sieve always hanging nearby. At home, a low oven dries only the salt that needs it, a small grinder replaces the long pounding, and the sieve stays because it is the dish, not brigade scaffolding. This batch uses 224 grams of salt and 49 grams of Spices (No. 181), the original 32-to-7 proportion by weight. The quantity is smaller because ground spices lose their perfume before a professional bin would be emptied. One cook, one stove, one evening.

Cool any dried salt completely before mixing. Warm salt wakes the spices and sends their aroma into the room instead of keeping it in the jar. If the blend clumps, ça se rattrape, and the sieve will put it right.