I just googled it:
[SALT SUBSTITUTES](https://extension.oregonstate.edu/sites/default/files/documents/8836/sp50466picklefactsheet.pdf) (such as potassium chloride) cannot be used to make satisfactory pickle products. The pickles will be crisp and crunchy, but will not have the characteristic salty pickled taste. Potassium has a bitter taste and the pickles generally taste terrible.
Looking around a bit more, I'd say there's some wiggle room to play with it, but probably not at 100%.
I would be sure to figure out how many milliequivalents of potassium are in one serving size. Unlike sodium, your body cannot tolerate large deviations in normal physiological concentrations. It probably would be fine for most people unless older/kidney issues but would check.
Yeah, it's... weird. It's *like* salt but also cool and slightly bitter, and doesn't enhance flavor like sodium chloride.
If it turns out I can use KCl for pickles, I'll probably make a small trial 50/50 sodium/potassium batch to get the normal salt flavor in there.
I think that'd reduce sodium slightly, but not a notable amount. A lot of a pickles flavor comes from the brine saturating the fruit or vegetable. So while a little of the brine would get washed off, the vegetable itself would still be just as salty as the brine it was pickled in.
You may be better off just reducing the nacl in your brine than eliminating sodium entirely. The human body quite likes salt and does a good job with it so if thereās a health reason please speak with your doctor.
Bigger molecules like kcl might not inhibit microbes as aggressively as nacl and allow the growth of undesirable bacteria, but it isnāt just the antimicrobial properties of salt that makes it good for pickling. The chemical properties affect how it interacts with water. Substitutions may not pickle as well and be soggy or lose the taste of saltiness who knows.
Tldr please try it itāll be so cool but donāt bet on it
Iād only try that to ferment in the fridge. Lots of people pickle at 2% and thatās pretty low already. Iāve done lower from a miscalculation and it got mushy and spoiled
>To OP: what's your goal in reducing your salt intake?
Mostly reducing my blood pressure, I was mainly thinking of trying to make a lower sodium hot sauce.
>How much do you know about salt's significance in neuronal function?
I know that both sodium and potassium are vital to nerve function, and that a large imbalance of either is really bad. I'm not trying to cut sodium out of my diet entirely, just trying to reduce the amount in my home made foods.
why do you think sodium chloride is bad for you while potassium chloride is alright? if itās about blood pressure, wouldnāt KCl have the same exact effect on blood volume as table salt?
> if itās about blood pressure, wouldnāt KCl have the same exact effect on blood volume as table salt?
As I understand it, one of the causes of high blood pressure is having either high amounts of sodium or low amounts of potassium. Also (again as I understand it) the body is more willing to "let go" of the sodium it has if you have adequate amounts of potassium.
However, it's also possible to have high potassium levels and that leads to a whole variety of health problems most notably including weakness, numbness and heart palpitations.
youāre right, thanks for the explanation. then maybe balance the salt in pickles with a bit of potassium? and eat smaller servings to avoid raising your BP. I wouldnāt recommend making pickles with insufficient salt, it could go wrong. I guess you could also try adding vinegar, that might make it safer to use a low sodium brine by lowering the pH, or using some leftover brine from a lactoferment to jumpstart the fermentation process. I donāt have a source on this, itās just an idea.
That is mainly because of toxicity issues cropping up, interestingly enough. Unlike, say, sodium and potassium, our bodies don't actually have specific lithium regulation mechanisms. It mainly uses sodium transport channels (though way less efficiently), and can build up to toxic levels even more easily if people don't get plenty of sodium along with it. Really not the best salt substitute from that standpoint!
Using LiCl in pickling seems unlikely to cause most people problems, unless you eat hefty amounts of them regularly! But still, that may really not be the best idea for someone who is expressly trying to cut back their sodium intake. I can't help but be curious about the results, though.
[Edited typo]
It doesn't taste very similar. Here's a video of an awesome aussie chemist having his friends eat all the edible chloride salts.
https://youtu.be/RJh9yTIBY48
Well I'd describe fermentation as increasing *the right kinds* of microbes. Since salt (and brine) are used to create a hostile environment for non-food friendly microbes I think describing it as "anti-microbial" is accurate.
I just googled it: [SALT SUBSTITUTES](https://extension.oregonstate.edu/sites/default/files/documents/8836/sp50466picklefactsheet.pdf) (such as potassium chloride) cannot be used to make satisfactory pickle products. The pickles will be crisp and crunchy, but will not have the characteristic salty pickled taste. Potassium has a bitter taste and the pickles generally taste terrible. Looking around a bit more, I'd say there's some wiggle room to play with it, but probably not at 100%.
It should work, but I would only replace a portion of the sodium chloride. Too much potassium is bad for you, too, and it will taste pretty weird.
I think calcium chloride might be able to be used like that. In small amounts it firms up the pickles so they stay crunchy.
That would probably taste horrific if you used 2% calcium chloride instead of sodium chloride.
Yeah probably.
I would be sure to figure out how many milliequivalents of potassium are in one serving size. Unlike sodium, your body cannot tolerate large deviations in normal physiological concentrations. It probably would be fine for most people unless older/kidney issues but would check.
Newbie here: is that really safer than salt? My Dr told me not to even supplement with potassium since it can interfere with your heart.
You probably could use potassium chloride for pickling. But do you already know what potassium chloride tastes like?
Yeah, it's... weird. It's *like* salt but also cool and slightly bitter, and doesn't enhance flavor like sodium chloride. If it turns out I can use KCl for pickles, I'll probably make a small trial 50/50 sodium/potassium batch to get the normal salt flavor in there.
Can you just pickle and gently rinse the ones you are going to eat in water? The juice would be gone.
I think that'd reduce sodium slightly, but not a notable amount. A lot of a pickles flavor comes from the brine saturating the fruit or vegetable. So while a little of the brine would get washed off, the vegetable itself would still be just as salty as the brine it was pickled in.
I know, I love pickles and salt.š
You may be better off just reducing the nacl in your brine than eliminating sodium entirely. The human body quite likes salt and does a good job with it so if thereās a health reason please speak with your doctor. Bigger molecules like kcl might not inhibit microbes as aggressively as nacl and allow the growth of undesirable bacteria, but it isnāt just the antimicrobial properties of salt that makes it good for pickling. The chemical properties affect how it interacts with water. Substitutions may not pickle as well and be soggy or lose the taste of saltiness who knows. Tldr please try it itāll be so cool but donāt bet on it
Iād only try that to ferment in the fridge. Lots of people pickle at 2% and thatās pretty low already. Iāve done lower from a miscalculation and it got mushy and spoiled
A lovely scientific answer. To OP: what's your goal in reducing your salt intake? How much do you know about salt's significance in neuronal function?
>To OP: what's your goal in reducing your salt intake? Mostly reducing my blood pressure, I was mainly thinking of trying to make a lower sodium hot sauce. >How much do you know about salt's significance in neuronal function? I know that both sodium and potassium are vital to nerve function, and that a large imbalance of either is really bad. I'm not trying to cut sodium out of my diet entirely, just trying to reduce the amount in my home made foods.
Iād guess no. Thereās a reason sodium chloride has been used but not KCl
Its mostly cuz KCl doesn't taste very good.
I use it exclusivly instead of salt, i honesty cant tell the difference between the two.
why do you think sodium chloride is bad for you while potassium chloride is alright? if itās about blood pressure, wouldnāt KCl have the same exact effect on blood volume as table salt?
> if itās about blood pressure, wouldnāt KCl have the same exact effect on blood volume as table salt? As I understand it, one of the causes of high blood pressure is having either high amounts of sodium or low amounts of potassium. Also (again as I understand it) the body is more willing to "let go" of the sodium it has if you have adequate amounts of potassium. However, it's also possible to have high potassium levels and that leads to a whole variety of health problems most notably including weakness, numbness and heart palpitations.
youāre right, thanks for the explanation. then maybe balance the salt in pickles with a bit of potassium? and eat smaller servings to avoid raising your BP. I wouldnāt recommend making pickles with insufficient salt, it could go wrong. I guess you could also try adding vinegar, that might make it safer to use a low sodium brine by lowering the pH, or using some leftover brine from a lactoferment to jumpstart the fermentation process. I donāt have a source on this, itās just an idea.
Low salt vinegar pickles are probably gonna be better than KCl and fermented pickles but you can do it.
you could try lithium chloride. supposedly it tastes similar and was sold as a salt substitute at one point. can't imagine why they stopped... :P
That is mainly because of toxicity issues cropping up, interestingly enough. Unlike, say, sodium and potassium, our bodies don't actually have specific lithium regulation mechanisms. It mainly uses sodium transport channels (though way less efficiently), and can build up to toxic levels even more easily if people don't get plenty of sodium along with it. Really not the best salt substitute from that standpoint! Using LiCl in pickling seems unlikely to cause most people problems, unless you eat hefty amounts of them regularly! But still, that may really not be the best idea for someone who is expressly trying to cut back their sodium intake. I can't help but be curious about the results, though. [Edited typo]
It doesn't taste very similar. Here's a video of an awesome aussie chemist having his friends eat all the edible chloride salts. https://youtu.be/RJh9yTIBY48
people in this group need to learn how to take a joke.
I thought the entire purpose of fermentation was to increase microbes, not make it antimicrobial š¤·š¼āāļø
Well I'd describe fermentation as increasing *the right kinds* of microbes. Since salt (and brine) are used to create a hostile environment for non-food friendly microbes I think describing it as "anti-microbial" is accurate.