Halen Môn Pure White Sea Salt

Does salt need reviewing? Well, with Halen Môn, yes, I think it does. We all use salt, to a greater or lesser degree, and use it in so many ways - while we're cooking as a seasoning, on our chips, even when making Margarittas (more on that later!). So why not be sure to use the best you can?

Stephen and I conducted a taste test, pitting Halen Mon against Tesco's own free-flow table salt. Obviously, to look at they are hugely different

The crystals are stunning beautiful and really big compared to other sea salts I've used in the past. But, they are soft enough to crush between your fingers and it is very good in a grinder.

Compared to "normal" salt, Halen Môn really zings on your tongue and when you use it on a food with a high water content (we tried it with tomatoes and cucumbers) it really brings out the flavour of both the food and the salt. On its own, it tastes like the sea smells.

We tried their best known product, the pure white sea salt, but they also make four other flavours - With Organic Celery Seeds, With Tahitian Vanilla, With Welsh Oak and With Organic Spices. Unfortunately my local Waitrose doesn't stock these, so I will have to keep my eyes peeled when I'm visiting good delis or buy online. I'm particularly intrigued by the With Tahitian Vanilla flavour, not a combination I've come across before.

Compared to free-flow table salt, Halen Môn isn't cheap. We paid £4.49 for a 250g pot in Waitrose. But, this isn't a mass-produced industrial product and you are paying for not only the superior taste, but the time and care that goes into making it.

So, to round off, back to the Margaritta! Now obviously I wanted to test the salt to its very limits, so decided that a Margarita was the way to go and I'm pleased to say it stuck to the rim of the glass, just as it should. If you want to join me in a cocktail, here's my recipe:

- 50ml tequila
- 15ml Cointreau, Triple Sec or another orange liquor
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- Ice, crushed if possible

Godalming Food Festival

Three days to go, but I am already very excited about the Godalming Food Festival on Saturday. Fabulous food and drink, including my favourite Pimpernel Fisheries - the main question is, will I get down there early enough to bag some of their fabulous fishcakes?

I always make a beeline for the fabulous cheesemakers too. I just love Sussex Charmer Cheese.



As well as fabulous home made and local produce, there's a great Italian market too, with more cheeses, pasta, salami plus all kinds of sweets and desserts.

Last, but not least go and find Ishmael's Mother - cook, purveyor of fine Thai and Indian sauces and general all-round Renaissance man! His demo-cum-taste test is a joy to behold - make sure you find him on Saturday!

Talking about food............

I spend a great deal of my time writing about food on my website (www.easymealplanner.co.uk) and in articles, planning recipes, shopping for food, cooking and testing recipes, then writing my weekly menus, but none of this really gives me the right place to talk about new foods and gadgets I find, which is what I plan to use this blog for.

I'll try just about any food; I'm very partial to Thai (see above), Malaysian and Indonesian food but would have to have my arm really twisted to eat liver and kidneys, but other than that, I'm always up for trying something new. So, if you've got something you'd like reviewed, be it food, a gadget or a new cookbook, let me me know.

Image: Kittikun Atsawintarangkul / FreeDigitalPhotos.net