March 18/Tokyo/News of Science -- According to recent research published in the journal Food Science and Technology Research, "Various salts can be substituted for sodium chloride (NaCl) to give food a salty taste. In these experiments, a small percentage of total NaCl was replaced by another salt (KCI, MgCl2, CaCl2)."

"The effects of these various salts on the physical strength and water-retention ability of egg sol/gels were investigated. In addition, the saltiness of diluted egg gels and solid cooked rice seasoned by these salt mixtures was evaluated by a large number of individuals. Substitution of Na by Mg or Ca salt imparted the egg white gels with high breaking stress and strain, and the egg gels showed less water loss by syneresis as compared with gels to which Mg or Ca salt alone had been added," wrote T. Ichikawa and colleagues.