Salt is hygroscopic, but rice is a desiccant

Hello, I’m Amanda McNulty with Clemson Extension and Making It Grow. We don’t have air conditioning and the inside of our house has the same atmosphere as the outdoors. This muggy summer has plagued our salt cellars, the salt is awash with water it absorbs from the air. Even the round box of salt from the store with the little girl and the umbrella that says, “When it rains it pours” is clumped up. You need to have usable salt to put on ears of corn on the cob – I’m going to get a glass salt shaker, dry some salt out in the toaster oven, put it in the shaker along with a fair amount of white long-grain rice. Salt is hygroscopic – rice is a desiccant – it can absorb lots of water but still keep its integrity. White rice is much better than brown for this purpose.