Salted fish

Dried fish and salted fish (or fish both dried and salted) are a staple of diets in the Azores, Caribbean, West Africa, North Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Southern China, Scandinavia, parts of Canada including Newfoundland, coastal Russia, and in the Arctic.

[1] Salt inhibits the growth of microorganisms by drawing water out of microbial cells through osmosis.

Any living cell in such an environment will become dehydrated through osmosis and die or become temporarily inactivated.

In more recent times, freeze-drying, water binding humectants, and fully automated equipment with temperature and humidity control have been added.

[3][4][5] The International Agency for Research on Cancer classify salted fish (Chinese-style) as a Group 1 carcinogen.