Over The Shoulder For Luck

[GlorifiedRice]

I dont know why I torture myself watching Rachael Ray (or Christina Cooks) but I stupidly watch everyday.

I call it Cooking Show Rubbernecking.

Anyway Rachael Ray does something that bugs the crap outta me.

Everytime she uses salt, she also picks some up out of the salt pig and throws it over her shoulder...for luck.

And cheerily says, "Over the shoulder for luck."

First of all not only is this a big mess for her in house janitors to clean up, but shes got this superstition all

wrong...

First of all lets get into the facts behind this superstition...

Centuries ago salt was the only way to preserve meats and it was hard to get, so anytime you wasted or spilled

some it was bad luck and so if you spilled some you were to pick up a pinch of what had been spilled and toss

it over your shoulder to blind the devil who was sneaking up on you to curse you.

You were ONLY supposed to toss some of what you spilled over your shoulder, NOT new unspilled salt and certainly NOT everytime you used salt.

Salt was MONEY back then. So it is like throwing money away. I hate to think people are mimicking Rachael by doing this.

[SylviaLovegren]

Didn't know she did this. Very annoying. My husband is superstitious about salt and has a fit when some is spilled, has to throw some over his shoulder. Of course, our young adult son finds this a perfect opportunity to torture dad.

[Panaderia Canadiense]

I learned to toss salt only when it had been spilled, only over my left shoulder using my right hand, and only a tiny pinch, to avert becoming penniless.

How horrid that it's been turned into a catchphrase, and gotten wrong at that!

[GlorifiedRice]

Just have to say THANKS for the confirmation.