The manual for my dishwasher says to refill salt just before running a wash cycle, because if any grains of salt spill onto the stainless steel interior it will corrode. If it runs right away, no issue because the salt is quickly dissolved, diluted, and flushed.
So then I realized when I cook pasta I heavily salt the water (following the advice that pasta water should taste as salty as the ocean). But what happens when I leave that highly salty brine in a pot, sometimes for a couple days to reuse it? Does that risk corroding the pots?
Yeah. Not immediately, the chromium in stainless steel gives it a good amount of resistance, but if you're leaving it for days at a time you'll find the surface becoming pitted as the chlorine reacts with the protective layer.
I can't imagine it's particularly food safe to leave your starchy pasta water out for a few days and then reuse it.
In any case it's far less salty than what could potentially happen in the dishwasher with a relatively large amount of the decalcifying salt and a couple drops of water.
Worst case you can polish and re-passivate your stainless steel cookware, but it shouldn't come to that.
I can’t imagine it’s particularly food safe to leave your starchy pasta water out for a few days and then reuse it.
I haven’t tested a few days of non-use. It’s usually if I happen to make pasta two days in a row, and (more rare) three days in a row (where it still boils daily).
Grains of salt can likely scratch the surface, which speeds up process considerably.
But generally, i believe, salt water speeds up corrosion due to micro structures in any steel (but its very slow, like 2-3 years of salty water). Also aren't you afraid something will come to live in 2 days in warm salty water 😱
Also aren’t you afraid something will come to live in 2 days in warm salty water
Wasn’t salt the most popular preservative in the days before refrigeration existed? The stuff boils with heavy salt (like ocean water), so starts off semi-sterile due to the boiling. Then I don’t imagine many things looking for a home in brine, which then boils again the next day. This water is saltier than foods that rely on salt for preservation.
Ocean water is self evidently friendly for microorganisms. I was thinking that brine was saltier than ocean tbh (and long term salt was used dry (?) for fish and meat), but this is more my half memories, if stuff doesn't grow for you, then its probably fine
Yeah, indeed I just realized from an article I linked that salt only works as a preservative by drying out food. So salt water is indeed useless.
And i should mention, that food safety issue is more connected to toxins from fungi/bacteria, not the organisms themselves. They'll die at 100 C, but some toxins might remain intact. And after cooking pasta your salty water contains not only salt, but starch (food).
Indeed, that’s a good point. I wonder how many people don’t know that. I used to think “nothing will survive 250°F in my pressure cooker” and was tempted to cook some questionable pork. But yeah, would have been dangerous because chemical toxins from bacteria output would “survive” (persist) in 250°F. So after some quick research, I tossed it.
Though I might be surprised if 24hrs is enough time for brine to not only accumulate bacteria in high numbers but also allow enough time for bacteria toxins to be produced. How fast does that happen? I would have thought a day is too short (I don’t think I ever let more than a day pass between boils).
i think e. coli grow in the lab in like 4-8 hours. Thats obviously in specially designed nutrient soup, and they prolly start from more than couple of spores in the air
Feely wise, in summer if i forget to put soup in fridge it goes bad in like 2 days, so more time than 1 day (and it gets friendly lacto something bacteria, so just gets acidic, not toxic). Fungi starts to grow in like a week.
I think it (whatcha doing) is safe-ish from toxins point (cause 1 day when they grow exponentially in 3-7 days is much less of problem), but still seems sketchy. Toxins are mainly fungi, with bacteria you likely get friendly ones which makes vinegar
Salt-resistant stainless-steel is the 316/316L steels & the 317/317L steels.
( the L versions are low-carbon, which means they can be welded & the low-carbon won't create carbon-rich defects in the welds )
Salt-resistant aluminum is 5052 aluminum ( low-copper. iirc )
normal cheap aluminum kitchenware is Commercially Pure aluminum, not alloy.
I've no idea what percentage of aluminum food-contact things are made with alloys, but it wouldn't be that much, I don't think?
Nobody bothers using those salt-safe alloys for making kitchen stuff, because there's no market-pressure to do-so.
( those stainless steels are costly, & 5052's used mostly for boats/marine/nautical stuff )
Therefore, using salt in the other alloy bowls/pots/pans does release metals ( including nickel or/and chromium ) into one's diet or/and ecology.
I won't add salt to normal "stainless" pots or pans because of that: it can get added after, even-though that's a harsher taste.
_ /\ _
