# Is calcium chloride salty?



## PrettyPaisley (May 18, 2007)

I just opened a jar of dill pickles I put up using Pickle Crisp. Holy cannoli, they are salty. They are so salty I can barely eat them. I had to put them in chicken salad just to cut the salt! 

If it's the Pickle Crisp that makes them salty, isn't it limiting? I can't see using it in cinnamon or bread and butter pickles, you know?


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## Prickle (May 9, 2009)

I haven't noticed it being salty.


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## judylou (Jun 19, 2009)

No it isn't salty and it works (keeps the pickles crisp) by boosting the calcium levels in the cells of the slices, by replacing any salts in the cells with calcium.

Since cukes aren't naturally salty, any salt had to first come from the recipe or methods used to prep the cukes. EX: If it called for a salt pre-soak then much more fresh water soak and rinsing after the salt-water soak was needed.

You can cut the salty flavor some once each jar is opened by pouring off 1/4 -1/3 of the brine in the jar and replacing it with boiled and then cooled water. But that will reduce the safe storage time in the fridge.


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## coalroadcabin (Jun 16, 2004)

PrettyPaisley,
I've tried Dills three different ways this year - quick dill recipe with Pickle Crisp added, quick dill recipe without the Pickle Crisp and Deli Dills. 

FWIW, I think the recipes in the Ball Book and So Easy to Preserve book produce an overly salty pickle. The Deli Dills are by far the crispiest (and saltiest!) - but still need another 1 1/2 weeks to ferment, after they are processed they may very well end up limp. The quick dills with the Pickle Crisp are crisp and salty - the quick dills w/o the Pickle Crisp are salty & pretty darn limp! 

If anybody has an 'approved and tested' dill pickle recipe that produces a shelf stable, crisp, dilly, spicy pickle - could you please share!

BTW, the 14 day sweet pickles are sweet, spicy and crisp! It is a great recipe.


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## Cabin Fever (May 10, 2002)

Where did you find Pickle Crisp? Been looking for it for years and have been told that it was no longer available.


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## coalroadcabin (Jun 16, 2004)

Cabin Fever, it's back this year. They had it at Lowes and Kroger here in VA this year. Sharon posted about it: http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/showthread.php?t=357679&highlight=pickle+crisp


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## Ray (Dec 5, 2002)

calcium chloride is the white chunks that the highway dept puts on the road in the winter to thaw the ice, hell yes its salty, taste it on your tongue. it tastes exactly like salt, sodium chloride . and many other molecules taste like salt too. best wishes, ray


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## PrettyPaisley (May 18, 2007)

CF-
Lowe's and Tractor Supply but you can also buy calcium chloride online in bulk. Much cheaper, I'm sure.


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## Solarmom (Jun 17, 2010)

just got some today at a Winn-Dixie grocery store her in FL


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## judylou (Jun 19, 2009)

It may "taste" like salt to you Ray but it isn't salt. There is no sodium (Na) in Ca Cl2. Just 1 molecule of calcium attached to 2 molecules of chloride. When dissolved in water you get calcium ions, not sodium.


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## coalroadcabin (Jun 16, 2004)

Ray said:


> calcium chloride is the white chunks that the highway dept puts on the road in the winter to thaw the ice, hell yes its salty, taste it on your tongue. it tastes exactly like salt, sodium chloride . and many other molecules taste like salt too. best wishes, ray


You got me on this one!!!!!!!! Last night I was processing green beans (until 2:30am!) I saw the jar of Pickle Crisp sitting on the shelf and my tired brain said "Go ahead and take a taste" *OMG!!!!!!!!!! * Pickle Crisp is NOT salty it is BITTER - think unripe persimmons. Lesson learned: I won't ever do that again!! :shocked:


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## Cabin Fever (May 10, 2002)

Ray said:


> calcium chloride is the white chunks that the highway dept puts on the road in the winter to thaw the ice, hell yes its salty, taste it on your tongue. it tastes exactly like salt, sodium chloride . and many other molecules taste like salt too. best wishes, ray


TMI alert!
Minnesota highway departments use primarily sodium chloride (rock salt) for ice control. Calcium chloride is way too expensive. If the stuff you tasted was in pellet or flake form is was likely calcium chloride, if it looked like a crystal or small whitish to clearish gravel, it was rock salt.


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