Two years ago, I was plating a dish I'd perfected over months—a simple grilled branzino with charred vegetables, finishing oil, and what I thought was the finest sea salt I could source. A mentor tasted it and asked me a single question: "Do you know what's in that salt?" I didn't. A week later, I learned that a single kilogram of commercial sea salt can contain up to 600 microplastics. I was seasoning every plate with invisible contamination.
That moment changed everything about how I approach my craft. It's not just about technique anymore—it's about the purity of every single ingredient that touches a plate, especially salt. Because salt isn't neutral. It's not just a flavor enhancer. Salt is a carrier. It carries minerals, it carries history, and if we're not careful, it carries pollution.
Today, I work with chefs and home cooks who are asking the same questions I asked two years ago. And the answer I've found isn't complicated: microplastic-free spring salt from a source like Ancestral Spring Salt—born 220 million years ago in the geological heart of Navarre, untouched by modern contamination—isn't just better for your health. It's fundamentally better for your cooking.
What's Really in Your Salt?
Let me be direct: most of the salt in your kitchen came from the ocean. And the ocean, today, is contaminated. Studies have shown that sea salt harvested from modern waters carries microplastics—tiny fragments of broken-down plastic that have infiltrated every marine ecosystem. These particles are invisible to the naked eye, but they're there. In your shakers. On your plates. In your body.
When I discovered this, I started asking my suppliers harder questions. Where exactly did this salt come from? How was it processed? What additives does it contain? The answers were shocking. Most commercial sea salts are treated with anti-caking agents, bleached, or heated to extreme temperatures—processes that strip away natural minerals and introduce chemical residues.
Then I learned about spring salt. Specifically, I learned about Ancestral Spring Salt from Navarre, Spain—a salt harvested from a fossilized sea deposit that formed when the Mediterranean was an inland sea, 220 million years ago. Long before plastic existed. Long before modern pollution. This salt was sealed underground, protected from contamination, until master salt makers chose to hand-harvest it using 100% manual processes, with zero chemical additives.
The difference isn't theoretical. It's real, and it's measurable.
Why Spring Salt Changes Everything About How You Cook
The first time I used pure, microplastic-free spring salt in my kitchen, I noticed something subtle but undeniable: my dishes required less seasoning. Not because the salt was "stronger"—but because it was cleaner, more mineral-rich, and didn't carry the bitter, chemical aftertaste that commercial salt often has.
This is what most chefs miss. They think salt is salt. They don't understand that the mineral profile of your salt directly affects the flavor chemistry of your dish. Spring salt, particularly fleur de sel from Navarre, contains naturally occurring calcium, potassium, and magnesium in a balanced ratio. These minerals don't just add flavor—they enhance it. They make vegetables taste more vegetable-like. They make fish taste cleaner, brighter.
I started experimenting. I seasoned the same dish—a simple salad of heirloom tomatoes, olive oil, and fresh herbs—with three different salts: refined table salt, standard sea salt, and Ancestral Spring Salt's fleur de sel. The difference was immediate. The table salt made the vegetables taste muted, almost bitter. The sea salt was better, but had an underlying metallic note I'd never quite identified before. The spring salt? It disappeared into the dish entirely, leaving only amplified flavor. The tomatoes tasted more like tomatoes.
This is why I switched. And this is why every chef I've introduced to pure spring salt has done the same.
The Health Case for Microplastic-Free Salt
As a chef, I care first about flavor and technique. But I also cook for people. Real people with real health concerns. And the microplastic question matters—not just for ethics, but for health.
Research is still emerging on the long-term effects of microplastic ingestion, but what we know is troubling: these particles can accumulate in organs, they're difficult for the body to eliminate, and they may carry chemical additives and pollutants absorbed from the ocean. When salt is one of the few ingredients we use daily—in small quantities, yes, but consistently—choosing a source with zero microplastics isn't just a preference. It's a responsibility.
I have clients who are deeply health-conscious. They source organic vegetables, they avoid processed foods, they track their intake of heavy metals and pesticides. And then they season with contaminated salt. It's like spending two hours sourcing the perfect fish, only to cook it in polluted water.
Ancestral Spring Salt solves this at the source. Because it comes from a sealed, fossilized deposit, there's no exposure to modern ocean pollution. And because it's hand-harvested with zero additives, there's no chemical contamination introduced during processing. When you use this salt, you're using an ingredient that's genuinely pure— 220 million years of geological protection, plus artisanal stewardship.
Understanding the Difference: Sea Salt vs. Spring Salt vs. Liquid Salt
Not all alternative salts are created equal, so let me break down what's available and why I choose what I choose for different situations.
Sea Salt: Harvested from evaporating seawater. The problem is obvious now—modern seawater contains microplastics and pollution. Some sea salts are filtered or processed to reduce contamination, but this strips minerals and often introduces additives.
Spring Salt (Fleur de Sel): Harvested from ancient, fossilized sea deposits—in this case, from Navarre. The advantage is profound: no modern contamination, rich mineral content, and when sourced from a reputable artisanal maker, zero additives. This is what I use for finishing dishes, for delicate applications where the salt's character matters.
Liquid Spring Salt: This is the innovation I've been waiting for. Ancestral Spring Salt's liquid format is spring salt dissolved in filtered spring water, in a spray bottle. For chefs, this changes the game. It allows precise seasoning without the grittiness of crystals, perfect for delicate fish, foams, or any dish where you want seasoning that's invisible but present. For home cooks, it means never over-salting again—you control the spray.
I use all three, depending on the application. But the foundation is always spring salt.
How to Transition Your Kitchen to Pure Salt
If you're convinced (and I hope you are), here's how I recommend making the switch without disrupting your cooking routine.
Start with finishing salt. Don't replace your everyday salt immediately. Instead, buy a small jar of high-quality fleur de sel and use it only for finishing—the last pinch on a plated dish. This is where salt's quality matters most, because you taste it directly. You'll notice the difference immediately.
Notice what changes. Pay attention to how your dishes taste. Do they require less salt overall? Does the mineral character enhance the food? Are your health-conscious guests commenting on how "clean" the food tastes?
Gradually expand. Once you see the difference, expand to using spring salt for cooking vegetables, seasoning proteins, finishing soups. You'll find you need less total salt because pure spring salt is more effective.
Experiment with liquid salt. For precision seasoning and applications where crystal texture matters, try liquid spring salt. Many chefs I work with now keep a bottle in their station for last-minute adjustments.
The transition doesn't have to be dramatic. It's simply about making a conscious choice to upgrade the most fundamental ingredient in your kitchen.
Why Artisanal Sourcing Matters (And Why It's Worth It)
I understand the objection: artisanal salt costs more than commercial salt. So why do I choose it?
Because every ingredient tells a story, and that story matters. When I use Ancestral Spring Salt, I'm not just seasoning a dish—I'm using salt harvested by master salt makers who have preserved a unique artisanal process for generations. I'm using salt from a specific place, with a specific geology, hand-harvested with zero chemicals. That integrity translates to the plate.
My clients taste it. They don't always know why the dish tastes better, but they notice. And when I tell them the story—salt from a 220-million-year-old fossilized sea, microplastic-free, mineral-rich—they understand that they're eating something genuinely different. Something worth the investment.
Moreover, from a pure culinary perspective, artisanal spring salt is more efficient. You use less, because it's purer and more flavorful. So the higher per-unit cost is offset by reduced overall consumption.
The Transformation: What Changes When You Choose Pure Salt
Here's what I've observed in my own cooking and in my clients' kitchens after switching to microplastic-free spring salt:
Dishes taste cleaner. Vegetables taste more like themselves. Proteins require less additional seasoning. The food feels lighter, more refined. Health-conscious diners report feeling better after meals—less bloating, no metallic aftertaste. And plating becomes easier because you can achieve perfect seasoning with less visual salt on the plate.
But the deepest change is philosophical. When you understand that salt quality matters—that it affects flavor, health, and the story of your dish—you start asking the same questions about every ingredient. You become a more intentional cook. You understand that excellence isn't about complexity or technique alone. It's about respect for ingredients.
Two years after that moment when my mentor asked, "Do you know what's in that salt?" I can answer with confidence. I know exactly what's in my salt. And that knowledge changes everything.
