![]() ![]() Be sure to tell your fishmonger that you need “sushi grade” salmon and that you’ll be eating this raw!) Cure for Gravlax (Good gravlax starts with the freshest fish possible. There’s way more cure in there than is technically necessary, which is a good thing…and gives you a big margin for error safety-wise. These days, most people cure using the “saltbox” method where you bury the fish in a boatload of salt/spices/etc to help everything infuse quickly. (Not what you were expecting from a raw fish recipe, is it?) Believe it or not, you don’t have to follow this recipe at all, and you’re welcome to play with the ratios in the cure as you please. I’m going to give you a specific recipe for gravlax, but I want you to know that making cured salmon at home isn’t necessarily an exact science. Cool temperatures are essential to preventing spoilage, and you shouldn’t attempt to make gravlax at room temperature.Īll I’m using here is a 9×13 stoneware baking tray, and I’ve lined the bottom with my salt/sugar cure and conifer tips before adding my salmon filet (skin on). You will need a good bit of space in the refrigerator, as the salmon should stay cool at all times during this process. That said, adding weight is optional and it’ll cure quite well on its own if you’re patient. Two trays are helpful, as you can use the second tray to add weight to the salmon to help it cure. A simple Ziploc bag will get the job done, but a 9×13 baking tray is a little bit more elegant. Honestly, you don’t technically need any equipment for making gravlax. It’s absolutely delicious, and all you really need to do is pile them on with the cure. ![]() I’m making gravlax with balsam fir tips (similar to spruce tips), which add a mild resinous flavor to the cured salmon. Pine needles and branches were often used instead to wrap the burried fish, instead of birch bark. Older traditions were more woodland-based and would compliment the flavor of the birch bark with juniper berries and other woodland flavors. Seasonings have shifted a bit as well, and now it’s popular to season gravlax with dill. The whole process happens in the refrigerator, and it’s ready start to finish in just a few days. Modern gravlax isn’t cured under the sand, and it’s not left for weeks or months at a time. The curing, combined with the cool temperatures underground and the natural preservative properties of birch bark allowed gravlax to keep for weeks, and sometimes many months.īurying salted salmon was like an insurance policy against future hunger, and we still eat it today because it also results in incredibly tasty cured salmon. Birch also acts as a natural preservative, helping to prevent spoilage when it’s used as a food container. Birch bark is the oldest form of wrapping, and it also imparted flavor into the fish. The cool earth acted as a natural refrigerator, and the weight above pressed moisture from the fish to help it cure.īefore they were burried, the filets were often wrapped to keep them from getting sandy. Salmon filets were salted and seasoned, and then burried in the sand above the high tide mark on a sandy beach. The word “gravlax” translates to “grave salmon,” which might sound strange, but it hints at how it was originally prepared. Gravlax, on the other hand, is an unsmoked cured salmon that’s easy to make with just salmon, salt, seasonings, and patience. Making smoked salmon at home is a bit tricky, largely because it requires a smoker. These recipes have stood the test of time, and we still crave cured, cultured and fermented foods even when they’re no longer strictly required for food preservation. With refrigeration, you can pick up salmon fresh or frozen from any grocery store year-round, but you’ll still make a special trip to the bagel shop for a few slices of cured salmon on your breakfast sandwich. Things like charcuterie, parmesan cheese, and sauerkraut were developed out of necessity at the time, but they still grace our tables because they’re just downright delicious. ![]() Historical food preservation methods always intrigue me, but many have fallen out of use for good reason. Homemade gravlax on rye bread with cream cheese, cucumber, and spruce tips. ![]()
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