Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat -- 7 takeaways 

Helen!!! This is not "a pathetic little youtube channel"! This is the GREATEST cooking channel (in my humble opinion) and you, Madam, are a great teacher.

Please don't say ''pathetic' again when referring to your show, You have created a great example of sound scientific study, easy-to-follow explanations, easy-to-love ingredients, faultless logic, and memorable lines. I thank the algorithm that suggested your show when I hadn't heard of it. I've benefited much from your advice.

This "pathetic little" youtube channel is my favourite and you're great!

I keep my beautiful salt in a hollow, dry coconut. I am 55 years old. I spent my childhood between Mexico City and Guadalajara. When I was a child ALL homes in Guadalajara had a coconut for a salt shaker. That's where I learned from.

I would have have taken both those first two classes - as I always like to learn principles not just recipes... And the reasons that I like your videos is that you always teach principles.

What do you mean pathetic little RU-vid channel? I came across it a couple of weeks ago and it's hands down one of my favourites and I'm slowly working my way through every single one of your videos.

7:07 seasoning is not salt and pepper. seasoning is salt and acidity 7:32 all salts have different crystal shape size and density 7:50 if you live in the US, the diamond crystal kosher salt is the best all-purpose salt to use 8:10 don't forget acidity; it brightens up your food and that balances the salt 8:48 salting proteins the head helps them retain moisture as they cook 9:00 get your salt out of those salt shakers, you need big bowls to pinch your salt 9:10 right amount of salt should make your food as intense as possible but without making it salty Salt is like Light Acidity is like Color

Your RU-vid channel is great. Love the insights on “next level” cooking in this one. Your metaphor for Salt and Acidity was priceless.

Many of us watched Good Eats, and would enjoy "plain, educational" videos. I'm glad YT suggested you.

Ha!! Let's be honest... kitchen love stories are for readers who've never actually worked in a restaurant! :P I'm an experienced home cook (especially with baking), I've owned two bakeries, and I've taken cooking classes all over the world (from Peru to Egypt to multiple classes in France and Germany and beyond). Even though I've not taken one of your classes in person, you're my favorite food instructor of all of them. I would imagine part of the difficulty is that compared to... well... pretty much *any* country in the world, the American diet is so bland, tasteless, and limited that the only seasonings most know is garlic, salt and pepper. (Most have such dull taste buds that they can't tell the difference between a microwaved chicken breast and a perfectly roasted one.) Emeril has zero talent, but he put garlic in everything and he became famous for it because kitchen "basics" with no taste buds could relate to the one flavor. I've picked up important information from every video, but the video that really changed my life was the one about sous viding chicken to a lower temperature, then refrigerating and searing. I had never thought about doing it to a lower temp, now I can have hot, perfectly cooked chicken in a few minutes for my lunch salad or for dinner guests. The real question is - do you want to remain one of the best cooking instructors? Or be the most famous? Because they're two very different things. :) I honestly think you could be the next Julia Child.

[from the 'Late to the Party' department] salt = light acidity = color To a graphic designer/amateur cook, that is monumental.

Love that your manner is matter-of-fact and a bit cheeky. Not flashy- but so good! thank you for filling a need for fun, straightforward proper cooking techniques AND principles. Cooking is not always a recipe!

#realcomment Your example at the end of the video was not only effective, but poetic. Since we can't sample your dishes on line the visual representation was spot on!

I live in Saudi Arabia, if you were here I would be the first to sign up. You are absolutely the BEST!

You come across as a warm, intelligent host, but a truly wonderful teacher. I really appreciate your opinions. Thanks.

Thank you for this video and for your help with extracting the gems from Samin’s book. I really enjoy your channel because you don’t have fluff, and I do believe that it’s important to address these fundamentals in an easy to understand way. I actually appreciate that Samin was brave enough to address it in the way she did, and it’s refreshing to know that there are people like you who can take a step back from the wanderlust to see and explain the practical side of it for those who want to improve. I think so many hold back or are just too inaccessible for the home cook. I am trying to get a copy of the book now so I can get “the real details“!

Now you need to try to float a class called "The Reduction of Men" The men will howl about it (as they should) and they women would get a kick out of it (as they should albeit ashamedly). Wonderful metaphors used! Really love your channel.

Helen's cooking sensibility is perfect. Thoughtful and wise in a digestible format.

Helen you are by far the best culinary instructor ever. Your videos are a gift to humanity. You cover all the questions that would popup in my mind.. And now i cook food knowing what i do and why i do. One more thing; i think your command of english is your strongest pursuit(which is obviously not found in other chefs) while explaining things in order and precision.

As a writer of books myself, I was pleased to hear you encouraging people to actually read books. It is different -- and research shows that you retain more if you read books. So most appreciated. (Also enjoy your other presentations.)

I just finished The Food Lab and started Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat today. Cooking is so much more fun when you understand the how and why of cooking, and can make changes on the fly and be confident (mostly) that things will turn out well.

Chef Rennie, you exude smarts, humor, wisdom and grace. Fabulous video.

I love your shows and don't think they are at all pathetic. I think your generosity of time, knowledge and spirit to create these shows to educate strangers is amazing. THANK YOU!!!

A video (or class) suggestion: I took the Harvard Food Science online course from EdX. The most interesting thing I gained from the class was about making sure that all 5 (not 4) taste buds were considered in a recipe. It improved all my recipes. :) I know you know a lot about this topic - I think it would make a very popular video to cover, and it would probably gain a lot more market attention. Something like... "How to balance all 5 taste bud senses in your dish".

I bought this book as well!!! I love the drawings inside! Haven’t finished reading yet but I’m loving it 😊

Well I didn't know you ran these classes!!! I'd have joined. I've always had problem with salt and acid. Huge fan, love your stuff

Takeaways @ 6:50

If Helen seems remotely vext here it's because she tried early on to communicate the first principle of balancing flavors but was stymied by format. It's interesting that it took a memoire to popularize a fundamental principle of cooking.

I love your perspective. No nonsense.

Helen and Samin are so talented and intelligent food creators I love them both 😊

I love your channel!! I have learned so much from you. Thank you!!!

I am new to your channel and I must say, I love the way you handle the spoken word given that English does not appear to be your native tongue! Bravo Madame… Bravo! Cheers… Keith

Honestly, that sort of course would be the first thing I'd sign up for. I can follow a recipe, no problem. I can look up which spices/herbs a certain quisine uses. But I find concepts that transcend those things to be much more important - that way your cooking will be delicious, no matter if recipe or not. You will know what to tweak or what substitutes would get you what results

So happy ive stumbled upon your channel. You're such a delight! Looking forward to watching your previous videos. Keep up the great work!

What a wonderfully simple explanation. Well, I mean ... I get it! Thanks.

You have such beautiful humility. It is Feb. 2022, and RU-vid just out this on my homepage, it's my first time seeing you and now I've binged like 5 episodes. I'm now a subscriber and I rung that bell

You have quickly become one of my favorite *outstanding* RU-vid cooking channels-right up there with Kenji, Sohla, Erin, Rafika and Chef John. Thank you!!!

the light metaphor is extremely good!! thank you for this :)

I bought my sweetie the book for Christmas 2017. I don’t think he’s read it yet, but he has watched the Netflix show. Maybe I need to borrow the book back!

No words.....Spot on !

Such a great take. I’m subscribing and diving into your channel!

I’m grateful for your channel!

Your videos popped up in my recommended list and I've really enjoyed them. I read that you have a background in computer science and art history and that was interesting to me because my educational background is in philosophy and art history, but I've made a career in software design. Funny, but some of the best software developers I've worked with over the last 30 years have all been liberal arts majors. I'll subscribe to your channel and look forward to more videos in the future. Good luck.

Yes! Couldn't agree with you more, Helen. Wonderful review!

Knowing salt was once used “AS “ and before money. That says an unbelievable amount about the absolute value of salt--then ,now, forever!

TBH, I read the book a while back but did not know that there was a show until today! Thanks for the analysis!

Thank you! You’re wonderful at synthesizing information ❤️

Well I bought the book, I've yet to read it... I did a search on youtube for the gist of the book & ended up here, b/c I liked your time format. I was like.. "Here's a youtuber who probably gets to the point"... ironically I was wrong. But I like your presentation, your pretty organized.

My gosh!!!! You are great!!!! Thank you for such an important information 👍🏼

I’ve never noticed these cultural parts of the show I just enjoyed the wonderful explanation and the wonderful writing

When I eat an apple I have the apple in one hand and a salt shaker in the other. Lightly salting each bite brings out the wonderful flavor and sweetness in the apple. 👍

I discovered the importance of acidity thanks to this channel and it changed everything. Dishes that used to be so bland, even though I was adding plenty of salt, finally have complexity. If I can't get something to my taste, I know that I need to add some acid and my fridge is always full of lemons.

Wonderful take 🙏

#realcomment Thanks for this video Helen. The one counter point I will argue strongly is that your cooking channel is as far from being "pathetic" as the dark side of the moon is from earth. All my friends and relatives that love cooking agree with me and appreciate your work too!

I watched that TV show. It was the best show of cooking I've ever seen. Samin Nosrat is fascinating. Now I want to buy her book as well.

I just started reading the book. I love reading. Videos are easier so not as good for my brain. I can binge watch cooking shows and forget it all!

Loved the book, love this channel. It's funny that when I reading it I thought about how Helen mentions the same concepts so frequently.

Oh no, NOT pathetic! On the contrary, pretty informative and insightful! Thank you for your therapeutic commentary, coach Helen! I enjoyed it!

Found your youtube channel two days ago. I LOVE IT and your presentations are perfect. Being culinary trained, a kitchen gadget collector and a believer in whole ingredients for body health... your presentations are knowledgeable, personal and very enjoyable. I'm noticing a huge decline in the availability of Kosher Diamond Salt Crystals..... what the heck!!! I can find kosher coarse salt all day long, but the Diamond cut Kosher Crystals are scarce in the retail world. or have gone up so much its shocking. ... going to see if I can buy a box from a restaurant owner I know because I know Food Service distributers still carry Kosher Crystal Salt. .....

This woman is a scientist!

#realcomment I don't have Netflix , however I rather watch you, Helen. You explain things clearly.

Great video!

#realcomment Hey, this is not a pathetic little channel Helen. I predict you will receive your Silver Play Button my March. I enjoy your subtle sense of humour as much as the tasty dishes. Thumbs up to you!

Samin Nosrat is one of America’s finest chefs.

Great video. Thanks!

Salim has a great personality

Love this video.

#realcomment Another great video Helen! Thank you for your channel and videos! Always learning something!

#realcomment Excellent presentation as usual. How many, HOW MANY videos have we seen from Gordon Ramsey, Jaime Oliver, Rachel, and all who demonstrate "seasoning" meat with salt and pepper? Answer: All of them! I do it, too, without thinking, automatically, like a robot, but now you've made me think and my brain hurts. Now, I can't wait to season something!

The massive cooking chops of this woman

#realcomment Ah, here we are, a new year, and for me, I'm entering my second year of Helen as my food guru. As a graduate of 60s hippydom, food was my part time fascination while I studied at university. I started cooking young - daily at 12 - as the child of a truly awful English-style Australian cook, which my mum sometimes happily accepts (and, I seriously never inhaled at uni, since I was too busy learning how not to tear holes in vine leaves, how to prevent avocados oxidising while laying about on their beds of shredded lettuce, how to make keffir from my best friend's war-traumatised Lebanese boyfriend..... you get the picture, a different world, but not!). Last year when I announced to my family at our regular Argentinian BBQs that Helen was my new cooking guru and my first lesson was how to dice onion (a thousand thanks Helen! dicing an onion was never easier), I have had regular ribbing ever since. Your description of a course with "deconstructing" in the title instantly made me think "oh, oh". You were caught up in the crazy days of post-modern course titles. I was a sad victim of such stuff at work as an academic. But we did start to see great books about food at this time which were not just great big collections of recipes. Remember Mark Kurlansky seeing the history of the world through a grain of salt in the early 2000s? (a truly great book still, you must have *Salt* on your bookshelf Helen). So I concur with @Michael Tellurian's lesson on not judging a RU-vid by its cover, only to add some remarks about, salt! Here in Oz we don't have Diamond Crystal Kosher salt, so, while I've been trying to hunt some down on the internet, I've been experimenting with salts available to me here. Apparently Himalayan pink salt is a no no, despite its recent ubiquity, because it is a non-renewable resource. Let's just say Pakistan is mining the fashionability out of pink salt while they have the chance. Peruvian pink salt is lighter pink and more delicate, though not so easily available - I find it at the health food store only - but it is connected to deep ocean springs, so more acceptable since there's no option for it but to go to the Pacífic Ocean and become sea salt, if not harvested. I'm not sure if it's the same for Bolivian Rose salt. But, I'm sure marketers will tell us anything, hence the extraordinary success of Himalayan salt which is on my banned list for ethical reasons. I belong to a local long existing food co-op, so am able to buy Celtic sea salt (from France, easy to over salt with this), Murray River salt (Oz) and various Australian freshwater and sea rock and flakey salts which are all excellent (we have Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre salt, a giant lake which is the lowest point below sea level in Australia). It's a salty world and without Helen I would have been continuing to secretly sneak more salt into dishes than people seem to think "healthy" without a guru to back me up ;) Sorry to have you take the hits sometimes Helen, all objections stalled upon eating :) A final - sorry, long! - word on salt. I have 3 elderly relatives, including my mother, who have all been prescribed more salt in their diets by their doctors because it has negatively affected their hearts ie: poor minerals balance. They have been so overtaken by the low salt (along with low fat) message that flavour and satiety have been forgotten. Since each have had more salt in past months their frailty has improved because they are enjoying their food more, so better quality of life. Food for thought.

#realcomment Believe me love, your channel is FAR from pathetic. Since I have discovered you, you have become one of my top 5 go to's for inspiration and information, and I am subscribed to something like 300 channels. I absolutely love your candor, demeanor and presence. Thank you for everything you do!

There is also taste like mad. Samin believes in tasting a lot, and that most people don't taste enough. Getting feedback helps learning and decision making in all domains. I think George Orwell might have mentioned the tasting and feedback from a different angle. I've read the book but not seen the show.

This indeed is a terrific book, but your channel is NOT pathetic. The low numbers of members is sad, but I’m spreading the word about you. 😘

#realcomment what a wonderful tribute to Nosrat and her book. Please do not underestimate the importance of "cultural fluff". If salt and acid are the light and color in the photograph, then the cultural fluff is the story. A photo of a peach does not need it, but ones of a child staring out a window, or workers taking a smoking break are filled with it.

You are amazing

Does she have a vlog or whatever these videos are called about all this in greater detail. I didn't realize this was a book review

The show looks like entertainment that I'll enjoy soon, nonetheless I really want to read the book and practice my cooking.

Whats your opinion on David's kosher salt?

#realcomment Helen, I often laugh at what topics you choose because you and I have such similar interests. I only recently heard about this book and your review came at just the right time. Regarding salt and Diamond Crystal...I'm a Cooks Illustrated subscriber and they usually specify kosher or table salt. The problem is that I use Morton's and when a recipe just says "1 tsp. kosher salt", what do I use? I guess there's trial and error.

The Netflix show is fantastic if reading is hard!! 😀

I love your videos, Helen. But remember, ANYTHING is sellable. ;)

What kind of camera are you using?

In SEA sometimes we use too much salt... And MSG of course. Peak title should have been MSG, SALT, FAT, ACID, HEAT. Edit: SEA - southeast asia

video starts at 7:00

I like your hair.

😎

"Make out" in the cooler

Starts at 7:01

7:00

🖖

Saying “use more salt” is like saying “spend more money”. Not everyone can afford it. I am a cardiologist and plead with my patients with hypertension and especially with heart failure to use as little salt as possible. Have you ever wondered why nature did not instill in humans an identifiable craving for salt (say like thirst for water and hunger for food) and yet made salt tasty? My guess is that it is because, with rare exceptions (salt licks), there is no accessible salt in nature. We are the only terrestrial animals with cheap, reliable and risk-free access to salt that is separate from our food.

The one with thumb down, BOO for U!

Thank you for the informative video! Like others have said, you are not “a pathetic little RU-vid channel”!

The body needs salt but not to much to make you sick. To much salt is not good for your health, it is good to enhance the flavor but not to the point to use to much salt to make your food inedible.

I must express of my misgiving from the get-go on the premise of “salt” and “acidity” - “salt” is indeed invariably used by ALL cultures to induce the “savory” profile of food, but “acidity” itself is a flavour profile, which is NOT necessarily used nor even appreciated by ALL cultures for food, especially “CLASSICAL food cultures” OF THE WORLD, at least AT ALL TIMES. Besides, the author of the book herself is from Persian culture, which she herself professes publicly to employ the “acidity” flavour profile in food AT ALMOST ALL TIMES... I HONESTLY believe Helen herself would have done MUCH better - more balanced, more comprehensively, more justly, more accurately, etc. - on the topic of “seasoning” than MERELY “salt, acidity and fat...”. Do not worry, Helen. This is the provincial, going-off-on-a-tangent and sometimes literally criminal mindset of publishing right now, not just of cookbooks.

One word about salt - many Americans get too Much sodium in their daily diet.

Salt, Fat, Acid and Heat are level 1. For improved flavor add: gelatin, spices, herbs, inulin (such as in garlic and onion) and FRESH AIR!

Never saw the show, never read the book, not interested. I"m just going to watch your videos

I read the book, and it was ok, but it wasn’t great.