Maldon Sea Salt Flakes, 3.1 lb Tub

Maldon is the finishing salt: pyramid-shaped flakes harvested from Essex seawater that crunch instead of dissolve, so a pinch on a steak, a cookie, a tomato or a chocolate tart tastes like something. Every cook who has used it keeps a dish of it by the stove. The small box runs out in a month; this is the 3.1 pound tub, which lasts a year.

It is the Christmas gift for a foodie who already has the gadgets, the housewarming gift beside a bottle of oil, and a thank-you for a husband or friend who cooks for you. It is a specific gift from someone who knows, which is the whole appeal.

The tub is resealable and the salt keeps indefinitely. Transfer some to a small ceramic salt cellar and the gift looks finished. Thirty dollars for the pantry item they will never run out of again.