Salty liquorice
Salty liquorice or salmiak (salmiakki in Finnish) is a variety of liquorice candy that contains ammonium chloride (NH4Cl) in addition to the liquorice root extract, sugar, and starch or gum arabic that constitute normal liquorice. Many agree that it is an acquired taste and is not generally appreciated outside of Scandinavia, Northern Germany and the Netherlands, in a similar manner that Marmite/Vegemite is typically loathed outside of the British Commonwealth. Ammonium chloride has a spicy taste that vaguely resembles that of sodium chloride (table salt). However, salty liquorice does not contain any sodium chloride.
Salty liquorice candies are almost always black or very dark brown and can range from very soft to very hard and may be brittle. The other colours used are white and variants of grey. Since pure ammonium chloride is a white powder, the reason why black is the preferred colour for salmiakki is somewhat unclear. It might be partly to provide a "tougher image" for the candies, and partly because of the liquorice used to vary and soften the salty flavour. Carbon black is used as a food colouring agent in these candies.
National varieties
Salty liquorice is popular in Scandinavia and Northern Germany, as well as the Netherlands. In the Netherlands and Scandinavia, it is called salty liquorice candy: salt lakris (Norwegian), zoute drop (Dutch), saltlakrids (Danish) and saltlakrits (Swedish).
The Latin term for ammonium chloride is sal ammoniac. In Finnish, the candies are usually called salmiakki, although this can also refer to other products containing ammonium chloride. For liquorice and candies in general, salmiakkimakeinen (salmiac candy) or salmiakkilakritsi (salmiac liquorice) are sometimes used. For pure ammonium chloride, the term raakasalmiakki (raaka = raw) can be used, if necessary.
In Finland Salmiakki was once a trade name of Fazer, but became quickly a genericized trademark not unlike nylon. The canonical shape for Finnish salmiakki candies is a black diamond-shaped lozenge. This shape is so popular that in Finnish, the word "salmiakki" can sometimes refer to this shape, instead of the candy. For example, Finnish Defence Forces reserve officer students rank insignia are known as "salmiakki"s for their distinctive shape. However, especially in other countries, different shapes are used. In Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian, the candies are sometimes called salmiaklakrits, salmiaklakrids, and salmiakklakris, respectively, where salmiak(k) refers to the ammonium chloride ingredient. In Dutch, the term salmiakdrop usually refers to salty liquorice with a high concentration of ammonium chloride.
Availability
Salty liquorice is not readily available in the rest of the world, although the Sweden-based furniture chain IKEA sells it among their small assortment of typical Swedish food products.
Other uses
In addition to being used in candy, salmiak is also used to flavour vodka, distilled rye brandy, ice cream, cola drinks, and recently, meat ("Salmiakkipossu" is a brand of salmiak-flavoured pork, probably named as a pun on "Salmiakkikossu", meaning salmiak-flavoured Koskenkorva). Salmiak is also a popular ingredient for home-made dip sauces for potato chips.[citation needed]
References
Salmiakki (ISBN 952-5180-27-1) is a book about salmiak, written in 2001 by the Finnish author Jukka Annala. It serves as an introductory history to salmiak candies, and also contains philosophy about liking or not liking salmiak. The book's cover design is styled to look like a box of salmiak candies, giving the net weight as 780 g, which is the correct weight of the book itself but over 20 times the net weight of a typical Finnish candy box and roughly 8 times the weight of Turkinpippuri bag.
See also
- Apteekin salmiakki, the "pharmacy salmiak"
- Salmiakki Koskenkorva, a salmiak-flavoured vodka beverage
- Salmiakkikola, a salmiak-flavoured cola drink
- Tyrkisk Peber (Turkish pepper), a popular brand of salmiak candy
- Pantteri, a gummy salmiak candy
- Nogger Black, a salmiak-flavoured ice cream bar
- Lakrisal, a very salty salmiak candy