[ELI5] How does salt preserve food?

Question

[ELI5] How does salt preserve food?

In: Chemistry

Answer 1

Microorganisms tend to stop “doing their thing” if there isn’t enough water around. To check that this makes sense, simply note that honey and butter, despite being essentially pure sugar (yum yum for bacteria) and pure fat (also yum yum for bacteria), essentially never go bad! This is because there isn’t enough water in them for bacteria to do their thing. Salt removes water by drawing it out of the interior (via “osmosis”) and onto the surface, where it then evaporates.