Clumped salt

[Merlin5]

Never had this issue before. I've got lo salt and regular Saxa Sea Salt, both in cardboard cylinder containers and both containers have gone slightly soft. There's no sense of dampness as such but presumably moisture or water vapour has got in. Consequently neither container is pouring salt easily, it mostly bunches up at the hole. And in my salt pot, the holes are blocking up.

I've no idea why this has happened. The cupboard I keep it in is dry. I've got glass jars with air tight clip down lids, would they work better to store salt? And is there any way I can get the salt to unclump tself?

 

[Haze]

Salt overtime will absorb moisture, airtight container would help, not sure you are being serious that you can not work out how to smash it back up....

 

[tom_e]

Never had this issue before. I've got lo salt and regular Saxa Sea Salt, both in cardboard cylinder containers and both containers have gone slightly soft. There's no sense of dampness as such but presumably moisture or water vapour has got in. Consequently neither container is pouring salt easily, it mostly bunches up at the hole. And in my salt pot, the holes are blocking up.

I've no idea why this has happened. The cupboard I keep it in is dry. I've got glass jars with air tight clip down lids, would they work better to store salt? And is there any way I can get the salt to unclump tself?

Stick it on a baking tray and put it in a low oven to dry out.

Yes an air tight container would be the best place to keep it.

Salt is pretty hydrophilic it's why the roads get slippy and grimy when salt has been put down as it absorbs the moisture from the air so any steam or anything in your kitchen or pouring it directly into a steaming could easily cause this.

 

[Merlin5]

Good suggestion tom, I'll give that a go and then keep all my salt in glass jars. I've been steaming veg and boiling rice a lot recently so maybe more moisture in the air than usual has something to do with it.

 

[keenan]

Add a few rice grains to your salt shaker to absorb moisture and keep your salt dry.

 

[TurtleTwo]

Unclump itself? This usually works by hitting it with a heavy object.

Or just pop to the shop and buy a new bottle of salt for less than £1

 

[Maccapacca]

We use a salt cellar and grey french salt. It's not dry at all, quite damp in fact

 

[Merlin5]

Stick it on a baking tray and put it in a low oven to dry out.

Yes an air tight container would be the best place to keep it.

This worked a treat. In oven for about 5 minutes on 150c, it went dry and hard with cracks. Rolling pin to smooth it out and into my new glass container. I've filled my salt pot and it's pouring out freely as sand, no more clumping and blocking the holes. I'll do the same now for the Saxa salt