Balsam Fir Salt
In the early spring, balsam fir evergreen trees put out new green needles, which are sweet and aromatic for only a few weeks before they darken and turn fibrous and bitter. Our balsam fir needles were hand-picked, dried and ground before being blended with Salina Crystal Salt. This seasonal finishing salt is bright, herbal and resinous, perfect for garnishing sweet and earthy vegetables, game meats and fresh seafood. Whether it’s sprinkled over brownies, mixed into a medley of root vegetables, or used as a finishing salt for steamed fish or shrimp, you’ll find so many uses for this special salt.
Open a jar of our Balsam Fir Salt and let the intoxicating aroma take you to the sugar maple forests of the Adirondacks in early spring. Patches of snow still dot the forest floor and the ground is squishy underfoot. Around you, Balsam fir trees are just starting to sprout their new, bright green needles and the sweet scent of fresh pine fills the warm air.
Balsam fir tips are super-seasonal and the window for harvesting them is fleeting. When the trees put out their sweet aromatic new needles, foragers only have a few weeks to pick them before they darken and turn fibrous. A group of H-2A agricultural experts from Jamaica hand-pick the delicate fir tips. These are the same folks who carefully forage our wild ramps and who tap maple trees for syrup and maintain upstate NY’s extensive apple orchards.
