Gravlax With Brown Sugar, Parsley And Dill
serves 12-16
Scandinavian-style gravlax gets an American twist with the use of brown sugar as part of the cure. This recipe may be made with one large or two smaller salmon fillets.
1 tablespoon white peppercorns, crushed
1 cup kosher salt
2 cups light brown sugar
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lime zest
1 cup coarsely chopped dill (stems included)
1 cup coarsely chopped parsley (stems included)
1 (2-pound) salmon, filleted, skin-on
prep: 10 minutes
total: , plus 26 hours to cure
mortar and pestle
2 medium bowls
2 casserole dishes
plastic wrap
heavy cans
1. Crush the white peppercorns in the mortar and pestle. Combine the salt, brown sugar, crushed white peppercorns and the zests in a bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the chopped dill and chopped parsley.
2. Scatter a thin layer of the herbs in the casserole dish, and then a sprinkling of the salt-and-sugar mixture.
3. Rub the fillet(s) with the salt-and-sugar mixture. Put the salmon fillet on top of the herb layer, skin-side down. Scatter a layer of the herbs on top of the salmon and repeat with the second fillet, making sure to place the fillets flesh-to-flesh.
4. Cover dish with plastic wrap and put the second casserole dish on top of the plastic wrap. Weigh the dish down with several heavy cans, and let the salmon cure at room temperature until the cure and herb mix has liquified, 6 hours.
5. Flip fillets over and refrigerate, keeping weighted and refrigerated for another 18-20 hours.
6. Remove the fish from the herb-and-cure mixture, rinse off the fillets with cold water, pat dry with paper towels and slice thinly to serve.
