I live in an apartment and don't think my neighbors would appreciate a ham hock hanging from the ceiling in the basement, which is why I made a different salt-cured food - Gravlax. It is one of my favorite foods. I love it on bagels with cream cheese or rye bread with dill sauce. Making Gravlax involves covering salmon with salt to draw out the moisture - preserving and allowing for extended storage without spoiling. Although the purpose of curing Salmon is to extend its shelf life, I wouldn't recommend keeping it for more than a week. The curing process takes just a few days with very little effort.
Ingredients:
- 2 -1lb pieces of skin on Salmon which are approximately the same size
- 1/4 cup salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
- A large handful of dill
Combine the salt and sugar. Roughly chop the dill.
Place the salmon skin side down. Rub the salt mixture on the flesh side of both pieces.
Make a salmon and dill sandwich with the skin of the fish on the outside.
Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in a dish that has at least 1inch sides. As the Salmon cures the moisture will seep out, you do not want fishy water all over your fridge.
Refrigerate immediately. Flip the fish every 12 hours for 3-5 days.
Unwrap the salmon, rinse off the dill and salt. Slice thinly.
Serve with Mustard Dill Sauce.
Mustard Dill Sauce
- 1/4 cup dijion mustard
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoon chopped dill
Mix mustard, sugar and vinegar. Whisk in oil until incorporated, stir in dill.
Hi Elise! That looks really delicious - I love gravalox but have never tried to make it. Do you have any suggestions on the type of salmon to use for this? I want to try making it soon!
ReplyDeleteThanks Carly! The fish market I went to only had Soho or Atlantic. I choose the Atlantic because I thought the higher fat content would make a more flavorful gravlax. Soho tends to be lean and I was worried it would dry out. Let me know how your turns out!
ReplyDelete