“We’ve also used it in barbecue marinades and sauces,” he said. “I even use it at home, but you have to use it sparingly because it is strong stuff. I put it in an atomizer and spray it on.”
You can use it in risotto and burgers, for sauces and soups and in mayonnaise. You can even make ice cubes to bring another dimension to cocktails.
The Lea-Wilsons set up the Anglesey Sea Salt Co. on the Welsh island off the northwest coast more than 20 years ago. (If you are going by train, good luck with pronouncing the name of the nearest station, Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch.) They built a sea salt business by boiling off water in a pan.
Martha Stewart is just one of many chefs who are fans of the sea salt, as well as New York chefs Daniel Barber of Blue Hill at Stone Barns, and Daniel Humm at Eleven Madison Park, which holds the title of World’s Best Restaurant.
After doing a few liters of smoked water every now and then for Blumenthal, the Lea-Wilsons took small plastic bags of the liquid to the Abergavenny Food Festival.
Sales really took off about two years ago, doubling each year, Lea-Wilson said. (Company-wide sales are between £1 million and £5 million and are growing at 30% a year, but he declined to get more specific. As a small company, they’re exempt from publishing full financial figures in the U.K.)
In June, the company took it to the Fancy Food Show in New York; the Lea-Wilsons plan to distribute it alongside the company’s sea salt in the U.S.
“It’s just too new: People struggle with the idea of it,” says Alison Lea-Wilson. “People go, ‘You’ll be smoking air next.’”
Now, there’s a thought.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.