Most of our recipes call for kosher salt by the teaspoon, but you might have noticed that our feta recipe calls for the salt by weight. The reason for this is simple but important: From brand to brand, equal weights of kosher salt may not measure the same by volume. In the photo above you can see that 2 ounces of Morton salt is exactly 1/4 cup, but 2 ounces of Diamond Crystal overflows an identical measuring cup. That 2 ounces actually fills a 1/2 cup measure perfectly. Why? Because Morton’s crystals are denser than Diamond Crystal’s.

When a recipe calls for a relatively small amount of salt, this distinction isn’t very noticeable. Since this is the case with most of our recipes, we usually just call for salt by volume and leave it up to the cook to salt to taste at the end of a recipe. But the feta recipe requires a hefty 3-1/2 ounces of salt. Depending on the brand, that’s anywhere from 7 to 14 tablespoons, which is why we recommend going by weight for this recipe.

We prefer Diamond Crystal kosher salt for the lighter and flakier shape of its crystals. They stick to foods rather than bouncing off, and they blend better. Plus, Diamond Crystal is pure salt, with no anti-caking additive.