Most margarita recipes say to rim the glass with kosher salt. Why kosher salt? We needed to know and so we did a taste test to find out.
If you’re looking to craft a perfect margarita, getting a nice rim of salt on your cocktail glass is a must for most people. But what kind of salt gets the job done the best? I had to test it out.
In researching for our Margarita Series here on TheCookful, we’ve read A TON of margarita recipes. Most of them mention that you should salt the rim of the glass (not sure how to rim a glass? Learn here). And most of those say that you should use kosher salt to do it. We had to ask though, “Why kosher salt?” It seems to be the accepted norm but is it the only way to go?
You can of course buy salt that is specifically for rimming glasses. We’re not sure that it’s worth the extra money. But go ahead and check it out over here. For our taste test, we turned to what we typically have in our pantries: iodized table salt, kosher salt, flaky sea salt.
Table Salt
What we immediately noticed is that you end up with QUITE a bit of salt on there. And it’s really clumpy. It certainly doesn’t look very nice. Then we poured from our BEST margarita recipe and tasted. It was VERY salty. Overpowering, really. We knew instantly that table salt was not going to be our favorite.
Kosher Salt
It certainly looks nicer. Less clumpy. You can also easily see that not as many grains of salt are on there. Definite improvement. The taste test? Not as salty. Much better.
Sea Salt
I had Maldon sea salt at home. I always do. My mother-in-law’s originally from Maldon and whenever she visits us she brings some straight from the source. The best.
It certainly looks pretty on the glass.
Much fewer salt crystals actually stuck. The contrast between this and the table salt is huge. As to the taste? Divine. Really. This sea salt is less purely salty in flavor than the other two. It’s very subtle. Just adds that tiny bit that you really want to perfectly counter the sweet and sour in a classic margarita.
But it’s a lot more expensive. The 8.5oz. box on Amazon is almost $6.00. A 3lb. box of kosher is $8.00. Doing the math, a similar-sized box of Maldon would be around $36.00. That’s a huge difference.
The Best Salt For Margaritas
Given the fact that a lot of salt is often wasted when rimming a glass, we’re pretty sure that the sea salt is not the way to go. It looked and tasted better than the kosher, but not by enough to justify the cost. If you were having a fancy margarita party or using a very expensive tequila, it might be worth it.
But for your regular day-to-day margs, stick with the kosher salt. And if you want to mix things up, try out our Salty Sweet Citrus Rim Salt.
All of that to say we agree with the recipes calling for kosher salt. But now we know why. We like knowing why.
Podcast Episode: Salt On Margarita Glasses
Listen to me explain briefly about how to salt the rim of a margarita glass, and also about which salt is best to use, by clicking the play button below:
This post originally appeared in March 2016 and was revised and republished in August 2024.
DAVID DANRICH says
THANK YOU FOR YOUR EXPERTISE. WE HAVE BOTH SEA & KOSHER SALT IN OUR HOME. WILL TRY BOTH, THIS WILL BE FUN !
Harshendu Shah says
Good margaritas recipe
Julie says
Found you trying to figure out what salt to use for margs. Great article thank you! I have Kosher salt – never heard of Maldon but I will be looking for it now 😊
Christine Pittman says
You’re welcome, Julie!
Kristina Mathis says
Salty dogs ; gin grapefruit and a lime kosher salt rim, hit at every shin dig
Christine Pittman says
Fun! Thanks for sharing, Kristina!
Jackelin Connelly says
Thanks for doing this taste test. I find it extremely helpful. Tomorrow I plan on trying it out with my hibiscus margarita with the Maldon salt. I bought some recently from Sprouts natural food market for under $6.
Christine Pittman says
That sounds delicious!
Kellie says
Btw, I get my Maldon at HEB for $5.28 which is a lot cheaper than other stores and websites. https://www.heb.com/product-detail/maldon-sea-salt-flakes/1549748
Christine Pittman says
Kellie, I’ll check this out. Thanks for the tip!
Kellie says
I adore Maldon Flake Sea Salt! I put it in/on all of my food. I haven’t used table salt in years. I never thought to use it to rim a glass though. Love the idea. Rimming a glass with colored sugar is also cool.