Honey Salmon Gravlax

Ingredients

• 1 kg sashimi grade salmon (2 - 2.2 lbs (belly cut))
• 100 g kosher salt (coarse salt (not fine), about ⅔ cup - ¾ cup)
• 75 g honey (generous ¼ cup, see recipe notes for sugar)
• 2 tsp black peppercorns
• 2 tsp pink peppercorns (or replace with black peppercorns)
• 2 bunches dill (large bunches)
• 2 bunches cilantro (large bunches)
• 2 - 3 tsp citrus zest

Steps

1. 1

   Trim off any belly fat along the side of the piece of salmon, and remove any remaining bones with a tweezer.

2. 2

   Trim the tail end (if needed), so that you have 1 large piece of salmon that's about 2 - 2.2 lbs / 1 kg, OR 2 x 1 lb / 455 g pieces of salmon.

3. 3

   Make a few, small shallow cuts on the skin side of the salmon (optional, this is to allow the curing mixture to penetrate into the salmon from the bottom as well).

4. 4

   Pat dry the salmon, wrap it, and leave it in the fridge until needed.

5. 5

   Prepare a container that will comfortably fit the salmon piece by lining it with a large piece of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Or use a ziploc bag instead.

6. 6

   Grind the peppercorns coarsely, and set aside. Use a mortar and pestle, or place the spices between parchment paper and crush them with a mallet or rolling pin.

7. 7

   Wash and dry the herbs. You can chop them up roughly if you like, or keep them whole. Any thick stems can either be removed or crushed.

8. 8

   Zest 1 - 2 lemons to get about 1 tbsp of zest.

9. 9

   In a bowl, add the salt, honey, ground peppercorns, and lemon zest, and mix well.

10. 10

    Spread or sprinkle about ⅓ of the salt-honey mixture on the bottom of the lined dish / ziploc bag, followed by about ⅓ of the dill and cilantro (make sure there's enough herb mix to completely cover the salmon on top as well).

11. 11

    Place the salmon on top of this with the skin side down.

12. 12

    Spread the remaining salt-honey mixture on the surface of the salmon as evenly as possible, followed by the herbs to generously cover the whole surface of the salmon.

13. 13

    Wrap and cover the salmon inside the dish with plastic wrap. Or seal inside the ziploc bag, removing as much air as possible, and place it on a tray.

14. 14

    Place something heavy on top to weigh down the salmon. I usually keep a glass dish on top and then place cans of beans / tomato on top as my glass dish isn't heavy enough (see pictures in the post for reference).

15. 15

    Transfer the salmon into the fridge.

16. 16

    Flip the salmon over every 12 hours, so that both sides are evenly curing. Make sure your hands are clean when you’re handling the salmon. If the salmon is in a ziploc bag, flip the bag over (you don’t have to open the bag).

17. 17

    The curing mixture will dissolve into a liquid, but you do not have to remove this liquid during the curing process.

18. 18

    Let the salmon cure for a total or 48 hours minimum, or up to 72 hours. At 48 hours the salmon will still be soft, but firm. At 72 hours it will be more firm. My preference is for about 2.5 - 3 days (60 - 72 hours), and then let the salmon rest for about 12 hours before slicing.

19. 19

    After the curing time, remove the salmon from the curing mixture. Wipe off the excess curing mixture, spices, and herbs from the salmon.

20. 20

    Optionally, you can wash off any excess herbs or spices under cold running water.

21. 21

    Pat dry and return the salmon to a clean dry dish and let it rest in the fridge for about 8 - 12 hours.

22. 22

    Before serving, find a corner of the salmon where you can loosen the skin. Flip the salmon over and gently pull the skin off completely (see pictures in post for reference). The skin can be discarded.

23. 23

    To slice the gravlax, it's crucial to use a very sharp knife. A dull knife will result in jagged, uneven, squashed slices. A sharp knife will cleanly cut thin slices. Also make sure your hands are clean any time you're handling the salmon.

24. 24

    I prefer to cut the gravlax at an angle to get a larger surface area, but you can cut straight slices as well. You can also cut cubes of gravlax.

25. 25

    Place the slices and / or the whole fillet on a serving dish, and serve as part of a platter with crackers, rye bread, and toppings.

26. 26

    Traditionally, gravlax is served with a mustard dill sauce, and I made a honey mustard dill sauce to accompany this gravlax here. A herbed cream cheese spread is also great.