Cheonilyeom (Korea's sun-dried sea salt) takes five steps and months of aging. Just sun, sea, and time.
At high tide, we channel pristine, mineral-rich seawater into our first holding pond.
Over 10 days, the water flows downhill through a series of five ponds. Here, the sun's rays work to naturally evaporate the water, enriching the brine.
We filter out impurities and move the brine to a final evaporation pond, lined with black tiles to absorb more heat from the sun.
Salt crystals form on the surface and settle. This is where the coarse, mineral-rich grains take shape.
We collect the salt by hand and let it drain and age for months. The excess moisture leaves, the bitter compounds mellow, and what's left is clean, balanced salt.
Once cured, the salt is shipped to our processing facility in the United States where it is meticulously ground and packaged.
"The usual bitter aftertaste of salt was remarkably absent. I like the light crunchy structure, it easily crushes, and provides a delicious accent to my desserts."