black tea & citrus-cured gravlax.
My standard for something becoming a “favorite food” is that I can eat it anytime, any place, and any way. Salmon is my favorite food for that reason — not only is a simple seared filet delicious, but I also love it smoked, cured, canned, and raw. And honestly? I have had terrible salmon and still liked it. Thus: favorite food.
Gravlax is a type of cold cooked salmon not unlike smoked salmon or lox. The three, however, are slightly different; but you’d really only taste the difference if you ate them side by side. Otherwise, it’s cold salmon. Kind of rubbery, kind of soft, but definitely not raw like sashimi.
I always have to google the difference between the three, so let me save you the searching and write it out here. Lox is the traditionally Jewish preparation of salmon belly cured using salt. Gravlax, on the other hand, adds sugar and dill to the salt brine to make a flavorful, sort-of sweet salmon. It’s traditionally Nordic and tends to be the one with added flavors (such a beets). Smoked salmon is essentially lox, a salted filet, but smoked. This offers a smokier flavor and, if warm-smoked, a flakier texture.
As you can see, very similar.
Making gravlax at home
Salt naturally preserves things like fish and veggies, so coating a filet with salt will essentially “cook” the meat so that it’s edible without heat. I like to think of it like ceviche, where the citrus “cooks” the fish without heat. If that’s still confusing to you, it might be more helpful to avoid cooking metaphors and read the science behind it.
Long story short, salt dehydrates the fish, therefore destroying the bacteria that needs moisture to survive. That removal of moisture is what makes lox and gravlax kind of rubbery in texture.
So, to do this at home, you’ll need salt, sugar, and dill. Coat the entire filet in the curing mixture and let the salt work through the fish over the course of several days. Eventually, the salmon will be safe to eat without heat.
Using gravlax
I can’t say I’ve ever seen someone eat a plain filet of cured salmon. I mean, sure, I’ve nibbled on a piece or two, but you wouldn’t sit down with a filet of cold salmon for a meal. It would be like eating yogurt completely plain. Doable, but not as good as a flavor or parfait.
Serving with cream cheese and bagels is an obvious pairing, but a common Nordic preparation is to serve it charcuterie-style with crackers, onions, capers, and crème fraîche. Another good way to eat gravlax is on toasted bread. This particular gravlax has a kind of herbal flavor, so it’s great with flavored cream cheeses (like the kind you get from bagel shops) or on top of cottage cheese.
I also like my salmon sliced thinly on top of avocado toasts. Does it get better than that?
Enjoy.
Serves: 4-6
Prep time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 3 days
INGREDIENTS
1 to 1 1/2 pounds salmon filet, center cut or tail end
3 tablespoons Kosher salt
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons black tea leaves
1 tablespoon orange zest (about 1 small orange)
1 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 cup fresh dill, thick stems removed
RECIPE
In a small bowl, mix together the salt, sugar, tea, citrus, and pepper.
Lay the salmon out on a piece of Saran wrap. Fully coat each side of the salmon with the salt mixture, pressing into the skin side as much as possible. Spread any extra salt on the bottom of the Saran wrap and place the salmon skin-side down on top of it.
Add the dill on top of the salmon, then tightly wrap the salmon in the plastic wrap. Wrap in a second piece of Saran wrap and seal to close. Place in a large dish with deep sides.
Weigh the salmon down with something heavy, such as a carton of heavy cream or a cast iron pan. With the salmon weighed down, place in the refrigerator and cure for 3-4 days.
When ready, the salmon will be firm and the outside will be tough, but the filet will still be pliable. Remove the fish from the refrigerator and carefully unwrap -- the dish and plastic will be wet.
Gently wipe the curing mixture off of the salmon, running under water to remove stubborn spots.
To serve, slice the salmon into thin slices diagonally from the top, angling towards the bottom corner. Discard the rubbery, tough outer sections on either end.
any plain old black tea will do. If you have a million sachets of tea, just tear those open and use the tea inside.
it’s a lot of salt. and a lot of sugar. don’t worry — it’s necessary, and gets brushed off later.
you want the salmon completely coated, like so. after a few days, the salt will absorb, and the cure will look jet black.
slice thin pieces by taking the knife diagonally through the filet.
