Gravlax Recipes

SIMPLE, HOMEMADE SALMON GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Rinse the salmon fillets and pat them dry thoroughly.
• Use tweezers or pliers to pull out any pin bones, if necessary.
• Drizzle the aquavit or vodka evenly over the flesh of each fillet.
• In a small bowl, combine the salt, sugar, and pepper.
• Divide the mixture into 3 even piles within the bowl.
• Divide one of the thirds of curing mix in half and place on a rimmed baking sheet or baking pan in the shape of one of the fillets.
• Lay a fillet skin-side down on the mixture. Spread a third of the curing mixture on the flesh of that fillet.
• Spread the remaining third of the curing mixture on the flesh side of the other fillet. Sprinkle the dill, if using, over both fillets.
• Lay the second fillet flesh to flesh on the first fillet. Sprinkle the remaining curing mixture over the skin of the top fillet.
• Cover the fillets and baking sheet or pan with foil or plastic wrap. Place a cutting board or second baking sheet on top of the covered fish and top it with something heavy (cans, pots, or pans) to weigh the fish down. Place it all in the fridge and let chill for about 12 hours or overnight.
• Remove from the fridge, unwrap, and discard the accumulated liquid in the pan. Turn over the fillets so the bottom one is on top.
• Cover the pan, weigh down the fish again, and return to the refrigerator. Let chill another 12 hours.
• The fish is now cured and ready to serve, but it will continue to benefit from another 12 to 24 hours of being weighed down and chilled, so feel free to repeat these steps a second time around.
• When ready to eat, pat dry, and thinly slice the gravlax against the grain using a very sharp knife.
• Serve and enjoy.

GRAVLOX

Steps:

• Drape plastic wrap over a glass baking dish. Cut salmon in half lengthwise, and place one half in dish, skin side down. Mix together salt, brown sugar and pepper. Sprinkle half of mixture over salmon in the dish, cover with the chopped dill, and pour the vodka over the whole mixture.
• Sprinkle the remaining salt mixture over the remaining half of salmon. Place over the salmon in the dish, skin side up. Fold the plastic wrap snuggly over the entire salmon. Place a board over the fish and weigh it down with a heavy object.
• Refrigerate fish for 24 to 36 hours, turning every 12 hours. To serve, separate the filets, and carefully brush off the salt, sugar and dill. Cut into very thin slices with a sharp knife.

GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Cure the salmon: Lay salmon skin-side down, flesh-side up in a glass or stainless-steel baking dish. (A large lasagna dish works well.) In a small bowl, toss together the salt, sugar and pepper until blended. Sprinkle the mixture over the salmon evenly, with abandon, until fully covered, as if under a blanket of snow. Use all of it.
• Spread all the chopped dill on top of the cure-covered salmon to make a thick, grassy carpet.
• Lay plastic wrap or parchment paper over the salmon to cover and press down, then place a heavy weight - such as a 2-gallon zip-top bag filled with water - on top, to weigh heavily on the curing fish. Refrigerate just like this, without disturbing, for 5 days, turning the salmon over midway through the cure - on Day 3 - then covering and weighting it again.
• To serve, mix together the softened butter, dill, shallot and mustard until well blended.
• Remove salmon from the cure, which has now become liquid, brushing off the dill with a paper towel, then set fillet on a cutting board.
• With a long, thin, beveled slicing knife tilted toward the horizon, slice salmon thinly, stopping short of cutting through the skin. Generally, you begin slicing a few inches from the tail end and you slice in the direction of the tail, moving your knife back, slice by slice, toward the fatter, wider belly portion of the fillet. The last slices are always hard to get. Once you have shingled the fillet, run your knife between skin and flesh, releasing all the slices, then transfer them to parchment until ready to serve.
• Spread the compound butter on bread, then drape sliced gravlax on top, and eat as open-faced sandwiches.

GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Combine the salt, dill, orange and lime zests, pepper, and vodka in a small bowl and mix thoroughly.
• Place the salmon, skin side down, on several large sheets of plastic wrap, and pack the salt curing mixture over the entire cut of the salmon. Press the mixture firmly onto the fish, wrap tightly in the plastic, and place, skin side up, on a baking sheet. Place something heavy, like a large iron skillet, on top to help infuse the salmon with the mixture. Refrigerate for 24 hours.
• Remove the salmon from the refrigerator and brush the salt off. Rinse thoroughly under cold running water to remove the cure. Sprinkle the salmon with the sugar and pack it in firmly with your hands. Rewrap in plastic, place on a baking sheet, and refrigerate for at least 1 week before serving. (The gravlax will keep up to two weeks, well wrapped and refrigerated.)
• To serve, unwrap the gravlax and using a long, very sharp knife, slice diagonally in paper-thin slices and place on a platter with toast points. Set out small dishes of capers, chopped red onions, dill, hard-boiled egg whites, and hard-boiled egg yolks for accompaniments.

GRAVLAX WITH MUSTARD SAUCE

Steps:

• Cut the salmon in half crosswise and place half the fish skin side down in a deep dish. Wash and shake dry the dill and place it on the fish. Combine the salt, sugar, crushed peppercorns, and fennel seeds in a small bowl and sprinkle it evenly over the piece of fish. Place the other half of salmon over the dill, skin side up. Cover the dish with aluminum foil. Place a smaller pan on top of the foil and weight it with some heavy cans. Refrigerate the salmon for at least 2 and up to 3 days, turning it every 12 hours and basting it with the liquid that collects.
• Lay each piece of salmon flat on a cutting board, remove the bunch of dill, and sprinkle the top with chopped dill. With a long thin slicing knife, slice the salmon in long thin slices as you would for smoked salmon. Serve with dark pumpernickel bread and mustard sauce. You can also serve with chopped red onion and capers, if desired.
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon ground dry mustard
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• Combine the mustards, sugar, and vinegar in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the oil and stir in the chopped dill. Serve with the gravlax.
• Yield: 3/4 cup

GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Mix salt, sugar and pepper. Rub the fish with the mixture. Add dill. Wrap in foil and put in a dish. Refrigerate for 36 to 48 hours, with a light weight on top of the fish. Turn the salmon several times.
• Before serving, scrape off the dill and seasoning and cut into thin slices on the diagonal.
• Serve with Hovmastarsas, sweet dill and mustard sauce.
• Whisk together mustard, sugar and vinegar. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add the oil in a thin stream, stirring constantly. Add the chopped dill. Store in refrigerator.

GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Remove the bones. Run the back of a chef's knife along the surface of the salmon to help reveal any bones. Use tweezers to pull out the bones, dipping the tweezers in water so the bones slip off. Pat the salmon dry with paper towels and set aside.
• Make the cure. Mix the salt, dill, fennel seeds, coriander, peppercorns and brown sugar in a bowl.
• Prepare the onions. Toss the onions and lime juice in a medium nonreactive bowl.
• Cure the salmon. Spread half of the salt mixture on a large sheet of plastic wrap, then top with half of the onions. Place the salmon on top. Spread the remaining onions and salt mixture on the salmon, making sure to put a little extra around the sides so the fish is completely covered. Wrap the salmon tightly in the plastic wrap. Place in a baking dish to catch any liquid that might leak. Refrigerate 24 to 36 hours.
• Rinse and dry. Carefully remove the plastic wrap and discard it (there will be a lot of liquid). Reserve the onions to serve with the salmon. Rinse the salmon under cold water and pat dry.
• Slice the gravlax. Use a carving knife to cut the salmon in half lengthwise.
• Trim off any remaining dark flesh from the skin side of each piece. Slice on the bias as thinly as possible, wiping your knife with a cold damp towel between slices. To store, wrap the gravlax in plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 5 days.

JULIA CHILD'S TRADITIONAL GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Trim the salmon fillet, cutting away any thin uneven edges and the thin end of the tail (which can be reserved for something else).
• Make sure all the pinbones are removed--run your fingers up the fillet; if you feel any bones, remove them with a tweezer or a needle-nosed plier.
• Cut the fillet in half crosswise so that you have two pieces of the same length and roughly the same width.
• Mix the salt and sugar together.
• Sprinkle half the mixture over each fillet and rub it in with your fingers.
• Place one fillet in a glass (or other non-reactive) baking dish big enough to hold it.
• Drizzle about two tablespoons of cognac over each half, rubbing it in with your fingers.
• Spread the dill over the salmon half in the baking dish.
• Lay the other half fillet on top (skin side up).
• Align the two halves.
• Cover closely with a sheet of plastic wrap.
• Place a board or pan on top of the fillets.
• Make sure it is resting on the fish and not on the sides of the baking dish.
• Weight the top with something heavy (a large can of tomatoes for example).
• Place in refrigerator.
• After one day of curing, remove weights and board and turn fillets over(so the top fillet is now on the bottom) and baste with the liquid that has accumulated in the dish.
• Replace weights and board and return to frig.
• On the second day, turn and baste again and slice off a tiny piece to taste.
• If it doesn't taste like it's getting there, add a little more salt and/or cognac on the fish.
• Return to the fridge.
• Cure for a third day, turn and baste again.
• On the fourth day, you can serve the gravlax.
• To serve, clean the dill away and wipe the fish dry with paper towels.
• Use a long thin-bladed slicing knife (sharpened) and start slicing a few inches from the narrow end of the fillet.
• Cut with a back and forth sawing motion toward the narrow end to remove a thin slice of fish.
• Start each succeeding slice a bit farther in from the narrow end; always cut at a flat angle to keep the slices as long and thin as possible.

GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Combine the salt, peppercorns, dill, sugar, and zest in a medium-size mixing bowl. Mix well. Lay a piece of plastic wrap twice the size of the salmon on a flat surface. Cross another piece of plastic of the same size over the first piece horizontally. Place the salmon in the center of the pieces of plastic wrap, with the skin side down. Spoon the seasoning mixture over the top and sides of the salmon. Using your fingers, spread the mixture evenly over the salmon. No part of the flesh of the fish should be exposed. With the palm of your hand, gently press the mixture into the salmon. Fold the 2 pieces of plastic wrap very tightly around the salmon, folding in the ends securely. Wrap the salmon a second time with another large piece of plastic. Place the wrapped salmon in shallow glass baking dish. Top the salmon with another baking dish. Place 2 heavy cans or 2 clean, wrapped bricks on the baking sheet to weight the salmon. Refrigerate for 24 to 30 hours, depending upon the thickness of the fish. Remove from the refrigerator and unwrap the salmon carefully. Discard the wrap and scrape off the seasoning mixture. Rinse the salmon under cold water to remove the seasoning mixture. Pat dry. To serve, remove 2 inches from the tail of the salmon. Slice the salmon, at an angle, into paper-thin slices. Serve with accompaniments.
• In a large container with an airtight closure, place 1/2 of the sugar. Add the bean quarters and cover with the remaining 2 cups of sugar. Close tightly. Place in a cool, dark place. Twice a day shake the container to distribute the vanilla essence. Continue the process for at least 1 week and up to 3 weeks. Replace the sugar as it is used.

GRAVADLAX

Steps:

• Pat the salmon dry with kitchen paper and run your hands over the flesh to see if there are any stray small bones - if there are, use a pair of tweezers to pull them out. Set the salmon fillets aside.
• Tip the salt, sugar, peppercorns, lemon zest, juniper and dill into a food processor and blitz until you have a bright green, wet salt mixture or 'cure'. Unravel some cling film but keep it attached to the roll. Lay the first fillet of salmon skin-side down and then pack the cure over the flesh. Drizzle with gin, if using and top with the 2nd fillet, flesh-side down. Roll the sandwiched fillets tightly in cling film to create a package.
• Place the fish in a shallow baking dish or shallow-sided tray and lay another tray on top. Weigh the tray down with a couple of tins or bottles and place in the fridge for at least 48 hrs or up to 4 days, turning the fish over every 12 hours or so. The longer you leave it, the more cured it will become.
• To make the sauce, tip all the sauce ingredients into a blender. Blitz until you have a thickened dressing.
• To serve, unwrap the fish and brush off the marinade with kitchen paper. Rinse it if you like. You can slice the fish classically into long thin slices, leaving the skin behind, or remove the skin it and slice it straight down. Serve the sliced fish on a large platter or individual plates with pumpernickel bread, dill and mustard sauce.

GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Place salmon fillets on a parchment-lined work surface. Remove any remaining bones from fillets. In a medium bowl, mix together anise seeds, caraway seeds, pepper, sugar, and salt.
• Place one fillet in a large glass or enamel pan. Cover with spice mixture. Spread dill on top of spices, then pour vodka or other liquor on top of dill. Place second fillet on top of the first, in the opposite direction (head to tail).
• Cover entire pan tightly with plastic wrap. Place a heavy object, such as a book or brick, into a smaller pan. Lay pan on top of fish to weigh it down, and place both pans in refrigerator.
• After 12 hours, remove fish from the pan, turn it over, and rewrap tightly with new plastic wrap. Replace weighted pan on top of fish. Continue to refrigerate for 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 more days, turning fish over every 12 hours.
• After 4 days, remove fish from refrigerator, unwrap, and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Remove top fillet, and scrape dill and spices from the surface of both fillets.
• To serve, slice each fillet on the diagonal into thin pieces.