Discovering 'the best salt in the world' on a foodie road trip through Portugal's Eastern Algarve
Discovering the 'best salt in the world' - which costs £103 a kilo - on a VERY well-seasoned food road trip through the AlgarveJaymi McCann visits the Salmarim salt pans in the Castro Marim nature reserve "how different her Fleur de Sel salt tastes compared to table salt Jaymi also enjoys regional wines and fresh seafood at Vila Real de Santo Antonio
In the shadow of Castro Marim Castle is a simple whitewashed barn. Surrounded by what might appear to be a sunny plain, it's so ordinary you could be forgiven for missing it en route to the more obvious splendours of the Algarvian coast.
Yet these fields produce something that has been grown here for centuries but now features in the kitchens of Michelin-starred restaurants around the world - Fleur de Sel. Or in other words, salt.
We stop here on our road trip through the Eastern Algarve and although it might seem odd to spend a day cruising on hot water, salt pans taped in, it's not the same as you sprinkle on fish and chips. Fleur de Sel is grown slowly, by hand, until it forms crystals which, on closer inspection, resemble the pyramids of the Aztecs.
Jorge Raiado took over his father-in-law's land 13 years ago, and looking at the little wonders of nature he extracts from the ground beneath our feet, it's easy to understand why it is one of the most sought after salts in the world.
"The Romans saw the potential of the Algarve to produce salt to dry fish and meat to feed their army," he explains. "But in the 60s and 70s, chefs started looking for something less industrial, something with more flavor and quality."
The Salmarim farm of only seven hectares produces 100 tons of salt per year, but only ten...
In the shadow of Castro Marim Castle is a simple whitewashed barn. Surrounded by what might appear to be a sunny plain, it's so ordinary you could be forgiven for missing it en route to the more obvious splendours of the Algarvian coast.
Yet these fields produce something that has been grown here for centuries but now features in the kitchens of Michelin-starred restaurants around the world - Fleur de Sel. Or in other words, salt.
We stop here on our road trip through the Eastern Algarve and although it might seem odd to spend a day cruising on hot water, salt pans taped in, it's not the same as you sprinkle on fish and chips. Fleur de Sel is grown slowly, by hand, until it forms crystals which, on closer inspection, resemble the pyramids of the Aztecs.
Jorge Raiado took over his father-in-law's land 13 years ago, and looking at the little wonders of nature he extracts from the ground beneath our feet, it's easy to understand why it is one of the most sought after salts in the world.
"The Romans saw the potential of the Algarve to produce salt to dry fish and meat to feed their army," he explains. "But in the 60s and 70s, chefs started looking for something less industrial, something with more flavor and quality."
The Salmarim farm of only seven hectares produces 100 tons of salt per year, but only ten...
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