Why is salt and pepper used in almost every dish ?

[DEAD34345]

Salt does something (I can no longer remember what) that makes the flavour of foods seem stronger when you eat them, so it does actually "enhance" food in a way other than making it taste saltier. As for pepper, it's just nice I guess. Stops things tasting as bland.

 

[Erana]

Pepper. Historically, it's the most readily available spice in the world. It's also one of the cheapest. Historically, it's been around for like, forever. And in many places and time periods, it was pretty much the only spice.

Also, pepper was historically very popular because it helped cover up the flavor of bad meat, which was really useful back in the time before widely available refrigeration. Its just stuck around because peppercorns are still cheap and widely available.

In most upper class restaurants they dont give you salt and pepper to go with your food because the food should be properly seasoned before it hits the table.. its a slap in the face to the cooking staff when you ask for salt and pepper on the food so im told.

This is also worth making note of when someone cooks for you in general. Hopefully they'll understand if you have a personal preference with your food, but be sure to at least taste the dish before reaching for the salt and pepper.

 

[techmec21]

Salt and pepper are literally essential for cooking. They're the base of the savory flavor. Not only that, salt was once used to cure and preserve things before freezing was a common method of preservation, making it an even more important part of everyday culinary endeavors.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

Pepper isn't used in *every* dish, otherwise I (and others, I'm sure) would never be able to eat at restaurants...

I don't add salt to food when I'm cooking either ('cause it's bad for you if you have too much!) although I will add a bit of salty stock when I make soup because otherwise it's just boiled, undrained vegetables...

What restaurants are you eating at? Ask for the nutrition information some time, it's all drowning in salt. The only pre-prepared food I've ever bought that was salt free was from whole foods, and it sucked until you put some salt in it.

OT: Unsalted food just doesn't taste right. I don't know if it's because natural salts get cooked out and need to be replaced or what, but salt makes everything taste better. Even sweet foods generally have a bit of salt in them.

As for black pepper, it's a universal way of adding some heat to something without otherwise coloring the flavor the way peppers (as in, the spicy fruit) do.

 

[BENZOOKA]

I don't like food with too much salt, and I never add that to food, unless I'm in the cooking phase. There should be enough salt of course, but it's a very rare sight to see me complain about something not having enough salt.

But I do love pepper and use those most probably more than the average.

 

[Fiad]

Because they are cheap common spices. Just adds flavor to things.

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

To be honest I really hate salt and will not ever add it to anything. Only the tiniest bit should be put on food while cooking and many people put on way too much especially on chips and it is very off putting. It also doesn't help that I am not fond of chips. Salt used while cooking for the sake of cooking(eg using a bit of salt in the water of pasta) is fine. Otherwise, is not and tastes like shit.

I will eat the food if but I always feel a bit queasy after eating greasy and/or salty food.

 

[CrystalShadow]

I don't know about pepper.

But salt is obvious. It was probably the first 'spice' we ever came across. (you can find it all over the place), we have an actual dietary requirement for it (though there is enough naturally occurring salt in most food that adding extra salt isn't necessary.)

We have taste buds specifically designed with the sole purpose of detecting salt...

Oh, and we evolved from life that began in the oceans (and ocean water is full of salt).

In short, salt is pretty important, we have an explicit ability to taste it, and it's very easy to get hold of. So obviously, it's going to be used a lot.

 

[FoolKiller]

I heard they bring out the food's flavour, during the cooking process at least.

Now, I'm the opposite of people who salt everything before they even taste it, I don't salt or pepper anythin'(Unless, I'm cooking)...So, take that with a grain of...salt.

Actually Edison wouldn't do business with anyone who salted their food before tasting it. He believed their logic was flawed and so didn't think they would make good business partners.

 

[DrunkPickle]

Apart from the fact that salt and paper simply taste good, their use is so ingrained into our culture, that we often fail to give this all any more thought. We season our dishes so often with salt and pepper because we're primitive lifeforms and it's possible to obtain salt or pepper from any food store on this planet. In other words, we're just used to it.

 

[lacktheknack]

Salt ekes out more flavor from which ever food it's added to. Seriously, experiment with it.

Pepper does the same, but more subtly. When your tongue contacts the pepper, the taste bud inflames a bit, making it taste things better. All "hot" spices do this, that's why spicy food is popular in many parts of the world.

 

[jklinders]

Salt was used in antiquity because it was a preservative. This is why it was so valuable. It is kind of a part of culture but it's use as a preservative persists to this very day.

In a culinary sense it is used by chefs because it makes the food that is seasoned with it taste more intense by irritating the tongue. When it does that that your tongue gets more sensitive to taste.

Black pepper on the other hand...*checks wikipedia* yeah, well it has been highly prized in european cooking since the dark ages for it's scarcity and expense. When better trade routes opened up and things got cheaper, this status symbol was opened up for common people to use. Until this, "pepper expensive" was a dutch expression for something ludicrously expensive. It's probably so commonly used now because our forebears thought it was great to finally be able to eat like rich folk.

I use it because I love pepper. I love my pepper mill and I am glad to live in a time where a pouch of spices is not more expensive than the average house.

 

[Torrasque]

Salt is the most basic seasoning agent.

The right amount will bring out the best flavour in everything.

Pretty much this.
Salt and pepper are not the greatest spices in the world, I enjoy adding a few different things to most dishes rather than salt and pepper, but salt and pepper are two good spices to fall back on.

I wouldn't say it is not used in every dish, but a novice cook would use just salt and pepper for any dish rather than anything else.

 

[justnotcricket]

Salt brings out flavour, and stops baked goods from getting too sweet. Pepper makes things...taste like pepper.

I tend to cook without salt if I can help it. I hate it when food gets too salty, and I find that if you cook with nice food, the flavours speak for themselves.

If I do want to make a flavour base for cooking almost anything, however, you can't go past onions sauteed in butter - here's the part that's relevant to this post: in NZ, all 'normal' butter is slightly salted! It's what I grew up with, though, so I find that the saltiness level of Anchor Butter is about the saltiness level I want in my dinner.

French fries are an exception ;-)

 

[omega 616]

No idea, I never put salt on anything ... for the most part I eat stuff as it comes.

I very rarely use sauce, pepper, salt or sugar with anything.

 

[ThePenguinKnight]

They're widely available in large quantities and have simply become a staple in home-cooked food.

Edit: It also helps that you can put them on something without any preparations. Salt has been used for sustaining food for traveling, not sure about pepper, but that contributes.

 

[gazumped]

Pepper isn't used in *every* dish, otherwise I (and others, I'm sure) would never be able to eat at restaurants...

What restaurants are you eating at? Ask for the nutrition information some time, it's all drowning in salt. The only pre-prepared food I've ever bought that was salt free was from whole foods, and it sucked until you put some salt in it.

Salt, for sure... I was talking about pepper, you know, 'cause I'm a massive wimp who can't bear any level of hotness.

I go to Nando's and just order sides...

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

Pepper isn't used in *every* dish, otherwise I (and others, I'm sure) would never be able to eat at restaurants...

What restaurants are you eating at? Ask for the nutrition information some time, it's all drowning in salt. The only pre-prepared food I've ever bought that was salt free was from whole foods, and it sucked until you put some salt in it.

Salt, for sure... I was talking about pepper, you know, 'cause I'm a massive wimp who can't bear any level of hotness.

I go to Nando's and just order sides...

Derp. I don't know how I misread it that bad. Still, pepper is kind of like salt in that if you don't use too much of it, you really can't tell it's there, but you'll notice its absence. It takes a /lot/ of pepper to make something legitimately hot.

 

[VladG]

Salt does have a chemical explanations: It's a natural flavour enhancer. It's why you have salt even in desserts. It's also a vital nutrient for the body.

As for pepper, well, here it's not used THAT much. Roasts and dishes that are made from mostly meat will often feature pepper, but soups, vegetables, salads, not so much.

Pepper is cheap now and a great way to add a piquant flavour to any dish that won't overwhelm people not used to eating spicy.