Once you try this Vanilla Salt, you'll wonder how you did without it all your life! This sweet-and-salty treat deserves to be a pantry staple!
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This Vanilla Salt is such a versatile ingredient! The warm sweetness of vanilla combined with the briny taste of kosher salt adds depth and intrigue to both sweet and savory recipes! Sprinkle it over freshly baked chocolate chip cookies, add it to salted caramel, or use it rim your margarita glass! Vanilla salt can bring out complex flavors in the simplest of ingredients.
If you enjoy this recipe, check out the posts for my Vanilla Sugar, Chai Sugar, and Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies!
What is Vanilla Salt?
Vanilla Salt is coarse kosher salt that has been infused with vanilla bean. Vanilla Salt has a sweet-and-salty flavor that will make you want to add it to everything!
How to Choose Vanilla Beans
When you're purchasing vanilla beans, here are a few helpful hints as to what to look for: variety, grade, color, aroma, sustainability, and fair trade.
Vanilla Bean Varieties
Different varieties of vanilla beans have slightly different flavors depending on where they're sourced. There are over 150 types of vanilla worldwide, but the most common varieties of vanilla beans are Tahitian, Mexican, and Madagascar.
- Tahitian Vanilla has the strongest aroma of the three varieties with notes of cherry-chocolate, caramel, and licorice. Tahitian vanilla is most used for non-food products like candles and oils because of it's strong aroma, but is amazing for vanilla salt, too.
- Mexican Vanilla is bold, dark, sweet, and woody with tones of smoke. It's spicy-sweet flavor is similar to clove or nutmeg.
- Madagascar Vanilla (also called Bourbon vanilla) has the strongest aroma and a rich, creamy vanilla flavor, but it also tends to be the most expensive.
Vanilla Bean Grade
Vanilla beans are available in two grades:
- Grade A beans are soft, shiny, and contain more moisture. They're also the more expensive of the two grades. They're easier to split to scrape out the seeds.
- Grade B beans have lower moisture content, and tend to be stiff and dry. Though they're not as pretty as Grade A beans, Grade B beans are still delicious! They're also less expensive than Grade A.
Either grade is suitable for making vanilla salt, but Grade A beans may clump your salt because of their higher moisture content. Because of this and the difference in price, I'd go with Grade B beans if you can find them. If you use Grade A, you just may have to stir your salt every so often to break up the clumps.
Vanilla Bean Color & Aroma
Your vanilla beans should be dark brown to nearly black in color. They will also smell fantastic! If they don't smell like vanilla, they're not going to make very good vanilla salt. If you can't see/smell the beans in person, make sure you're buying from a reputable source.
Sustainability & Fair Trade
So you guys know I'm an environmental scientist by training, right? This will feel a bit like I'm on a soapbox, but bear with me...
I always buy from companies that grow sustainably and use fair trade practices. Not using chemical pesticides, and maintaining soil fertility and biodiversity (among other issues) will ensure that vanilla continues to be available in the future.
Supporting the communities that make vanilla bean crops possible empowers women and ensures that child and slave labor aren't used. It may be a few extra dollars for fair trade beans, but imagine what that extra income means to those families! *steps off soapbox*
Native Vanilla is a fantastic brand, and I purchased my beans online from them.
Ingredients
Only TWO ingredients! See the recipe card (below) for ingredient measurements.
- Salt - I used a coarse kosher salt so that it would make a good finishing salt.
- Vanilla Bean(s) - For flavor. I chose Grade B Tahitian vanilla beans. See my "How to Choose Vanilla Beans" section (above) for details on the best beans for making vanilla salt!
Hint: Since you're just using the seeds of the vanilla, the pods can be ground up and used for Homemade Vanilla Sugar!
Instructions
This recipe can easily be scaled up or down depending on how much Vanilla Salt you want. This section provides only a general overview of the recipe steps. Full instructions are included in the recipe card, below.
- Place the vanilla bean on a cutting board and split it in half, then scrape the vanilla beans from each half.
- Add the seeds to your bowl of salt and stir to combine. More detailed instructions are included in the recipe card, below.
How to Use Vanilla Salt
So now you know how to make Vanilla Salt, but how do you use it? Here are some ideas for you:
- Use as a finishing salt- Sprinkle a little on top of cake or cookies or anything that could use a some sweet-and-salty vanilla flavor. I love sprinkling it over my Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chocolate Ganache Cake, and Chocolate Covered Graham Crackers!
- In homemade salted caramel - Just switch out the salt for vanilla salt in your favorite salted caramel recipe! My favorite is included in my Apple Shortcake recipe.
- With fresh fruit - Just a little sprinkle will balance and enhance the flavors of the fruit and add a little vanilla flavor.
- In coffee - I know it sounds weird, but a pinch of vanilla salt in your coffee adds warm vanilla flavor and reduces bitterness!
- To rim cocktail glasses - Use some vanilla salt on the rim of your next margarita! The kosher salt is substantial enough that it won't dissolve as quickly as table salt.
- Makes a fantastic gift - In just a few minutes you can have jars of flavored sugar for gifting to family and friends! Makes a fantastic hostess gift, shower or wedding favor, or special surprise for a friend or neighbor!
Equipment
No special equipment is necessary to make this recipe! If you plan to make this recipe for gifting, small decorative jars or glass cylinders make for a beautiful presentation!
If you're interested in making labels for your jars like I did mine, here is the Canva link to my Vanilla Salt labels to get you started!
Storage
Vanilla Salt can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for at least six months. If kept cool and dry, it could keep indefinitely. The longer the salt sits, the more flavorful it will be!
Other Recipes You May Like
Vanilla Salt
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup coarse kosher salt
- 1 vanilla bean (see note)
Instructions
- Pour kosher salt into a small bowl and set aside.
- Roll your vanilla bean gently between your fingers or between your fingers and your cutting board to soften it. Place the vanilla bean on the board and split it in half by running a sharp knife down the length of the vanilla bean.
- Run the knife blade down the length of the inside of each bean half to scrape out the seeds.
- Add the seeds to your bowl of salt and stir to combine. The vanilla salt can be used immediately, but will be more flavorful the longer it sits (I usually let it sit about two weeks before using it).
- Vanilla Salt can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for at least six months. If kept cool and dry, it could keep indefinitely. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition Estimate
Nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is only an estimate.
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