Skip to main content

Why Very Hot and Very Cold Foods Need More Salt

Here’s the science that explains why.  
By Published July 21, 2022

You’re probably familiar with “season to taste,” a common refrain at the end of recipes that reminds cooks to sample the food and adjust the seasonings—most often, the salt—as necessary before serving. But do you know about “season to temperature?”  

Sign up for the Cook's Insider newsletter

The latest recipes, tips, and tricks, plus behind-the-scenes stories from the Cook's Illustrated team.

OK, I made up that last phrase, but the gist is that the serving temperature of food dramatically affects how seasoned it tastes. And the more extreme the temperature—whether piping hot or very chilled—the more salt you need. In fact, we ran an experiment to prove it. We divided a large batch of unsalted chicken broth into five portions and seasoned each with a different amount of salt—1, 2, 3, or 4 teaspoons, as well as a portion that we left unseasoned. Then we tasted each portion at three different temperatures: 180 degrees, 90 degrees, and 45 degrees.

The hot, lukewarm, and cold portions that contained equal amounts of salt tasted noticeably different from one another—over, under, or properly seasoned. For example: The broth with 3 teaspoons of salt tasted just right when steaming hot, but overly salty when it was lukewarm and under-seasoned once it had been chilled.

Why? Because the receptors through which taste buds signal to the brain that food tastes salty tend to be the most responsive at temperatures between 85 and 95 degrees—close to the temperature inside our mouths. 

So the next time you’re seasoning food that is well above or below that range, follow these general guidelines:

Caramelized Onion Dip

The key to quicker caramelized onions is the ingredient we least expected: water.
Get the Recipe

Chilled Soba Noodles with Cucumber, Snow Peas, and Radishes

Try these earthy Japanese buckwheat noodles with a lush miso dressing and colorful, crisp raw vegetables.
Get the Recipe

Tortilla Soup

We had just 1 hour but still wanted a tortilla soup that was full of flavor.
Get the Recipe

Best Vegetarian Chili

We built the best basic chili from the ground up, and then entered the strange world of secret ingredients to determine what's legit and what's just laughable.
Get the Recipe

0 Comments

Try All-Access Membership to Unlock the Comments
Don't miss the conversation. Our test cooks and editors jump in to answer your questions, and our members are curious, opinionated, and respectful.
Membership includes instant access to everything on our sites:
  • 10,000+ foolproof recipes and why they work
  • Taste Tests of supermarket ingredients
  • Equipment Reviews save you money and time
  • Videos including full episodes and clips
  • Live Q&A with Test Kitchen experts
Start Free Trial
JC
JOHN C.
16 days

Absolutely the best chicken ever, even the breast meat was moist! It's the only way I'll cook a whole chicken again. Simple, easy, quick, no mess - perfect every time. I've used both stainless steel and cast iron pans. great and easy technique for “roasted” chicken. I will say there were no pan juices, just fat in the skillet. Will add to the recipe rotation. Good for family and company dinners too. I've done this using a rimmed sheet pan instead of a skillet and put veggies and potatoes around the chicken for a one-pan meal. Broccoli gets nicely browned and yummy!

Absolutely the best chicken ever, even the breast meat was moist! It's the only way I'll cook a whole chicken again. Simple, easy, quick, no mess - perfect every time. I've used both stainless steel and cast iron pans. great and easy technique for “roasted” chicken. I will say there were no pan juices, just fat in the skillet. Will add to the recipe rotation. Good for family and company dinners too.

MD
MILES D.
JOHN C.
9 days

Amazed this recipe works out as well as it does. Would not have thought that the amount of time under the broiler would have produced a very juicy and favorable chicken with a very crispy crust. Used my 12" Lodge Cast Iron skillet (which can withstand 1000 degree temps to respond to those who wondered if it would work) and it turned out great. A "make again" as my family rates things. This is a great recipe, and I will definitely make it again. My butcher gladly butterflied the chicken for me, therefore I found it to be a fast and easy prep. I used my cast iron skillet- marvellous!

CM
CHARLES M.
11 days

John, wasn't it just amazing chicken? So much better than your typical oven baked chicken and on par if not better than gas or even charcoal grilled. It gets that smokey charcoal tasted and overnight koshering definitely helps, something I do when time permits. First-time I've pierced a whole chicken minus the times I make jerk chicken on the grill. Yup, the cast iron was not an issue.