How To Save Salty, Over-seasoned Soup, Stew, Sauce

There are things you can do to remove excessive salt or too much seasoning off your soup, stew or sauce instead of throwing the whole preparation away.

Too much salt, as well as too much acidity or spicy heat, is a common blunder. However, half of learning to cook, or becoming a better cook, is developing confidence in the kitchen. And nothing makes you feel more confident than knowing how to fix something that has broken.

Anything, but especially dishes with multiple components or steps, such as soups, stews, or sauces, is prone to over-salting. If the recipe calls for a meat stock or bone-in meat, be aware that bones contain sodium. Most store-bought stocks, whether meat- or vegetable-based, contain some salt, and any stock will contribute saltiness to a final dish, especially if the broth is reduced as the dish cooks.

“If more than one of the added ingredients is salty, especially for ingredients like miso, soy sauce, or dried shrimp,” says Nik Sharma, author of “Season” and the new book, “The Flavor Equation: The Science of Great Cooking Explained in More Than 100 Essential Recipes.”

But if it’s too late, there are a few options. Andrea Bemis, author of the new book “Local Dirt: Seasonal Recipes for Eating Close to Home” and co-owner of Mt. Hood, Ore.-based Tumbleweed Farm, suggests a touch of sweetness if it’s just a little too salty. “I’ll add a tablespoon of honey at a time and taste to see if that helps balance the flavours,” she says. Sugar, maple syrup, or molasses can also be used.

If a dish is extremely salty, you may need to perform some more complicated doctoring. “Any good starch will absorb excess salinity.” “You can add chunks of par-cooked potatoes, let it simmer for a few minutes, taste it, and then remove them,” Sharma says, adding that the potatoes can be tied up in cheesecloth to make them easier to fish out.

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