- Sidney Forstrom
Gravlax (from Joy of Cooking, 1997 printing, pg 563)
Fillet or have filleted a 4 - 5 lb salmon, leaving skin on, and remove bones. Mostly, I have taken the “centre cut” fillets from a 7 or 8 lb spring salmon; I have even gone up to similar de-boned length sections from a fish up to 14 lb.
Mix together:
2 ½ cups Sugar
1 ½ cups Salt (rock, kosher or pickling)
1 tablespoon ground black pepper (I use white pepper - about 2 tablespoons)
Rub the fillets all over with the mixture. Lay 2 cups of coarsely chopped fresh dill (including stems) on flesh side of one fillet. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons brandy, aquavit, vodka or other spirits.Lay the other fillet flesh side down on top of the 1st dill-covered fillet. Place in a suitable dish or marinating container. Sprinkle remaining salt/sugar mix and scraps of dill all around. Cover with Saran.Weigh down with bricks or whatever! (3/4 lbs or more)Refrigerate!!
Twice per day, flip over the whole assembly, only opening the pairing to baste the cavity with surplus drawn liquid on bottom plate. Gravlax is done when it is opaque, usually in 3 days, but it can be done in 2 or 4.
Slice thinly, obliquely. Serve - Enjoy -- on French bread with dill or other sauce.- as Gravlax eggs benedict.- experiment!
Note: This is the recipe I have mostly followed. However, you can cut the volume down to 2 Sugar/1 1/2 Salt.)
The Great Scandinavian Cook Book is slightly different:
To each 1 lb of salmon add:
1 oz (2 tablespoons) rock salt
1 oz (2 tablespoons) Sugar
Pinch of Saltpetre
3 White Peppercorns,
crushedPlenty of Dill (or Spruce Twigs)
Refrigerate and weight for 48 hours. They suggest the salmon may also be served with creamed or sautéed spinach, poached eggs or boiled potatoes.
Aunt Fanny’s recipe of May 31, 1981 (deceased Mar 13, 2003, age 97) follows, as she gave it to me and as translated by my cousin. She used more salt than sugar and, being north of the Arctic Circle, she used the perma-frost cellar to keep the Gravlax chilled.
Aunt Fanny’s Gravad Lax
1 part Sugar
2 parts Rock Salt
Sprinkle mixture thinly on the bottom of dish, then lay fish skin-side down. Sprinkle lightly with a layer of salt. Lay flesh to flesh, with dill between every layer. Weight down. In 24 hours, turn over. Let draw for 10 - 12 hours.
Dill Sauce for Salmon
2 1/2 tablespoons hot dry mustard
4 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon rock salt (Sprinkle)
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon vinegar
1/2 cup fresh dill
1 tablespoon cream or sour cream or mayo (optional)
Note: To make the lax and this sauce, I use 2 large bunches of fresh dill from the market, pull the fresh dill for the sauce from the lot, and use the rest for curing - a generous supply!
Gravlax with Grand Marnier Caper Dressing (Another Variation)
For the marinated fish:
3 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon grated orange rind
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon coarsely crushed black pepper
two 1-pound pieces center cut salmon fillet, pin bones removed
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier
For the sauce:
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier
1/4 cup capers
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
Marinate the fish. In a bowl, combine the first four ingredients. Place one of the salmon fillets, skin side down, in a glass pie plate, sprinkling the mixture over it. Drizzle the Grand Marnier over the spice mixture, top the fillet with the remaining fillet, skin side up. Cover the salmon with plastic wrap, set another pie plate on top, weighing it with 3 or 4 food cans. Chill for 3 days. Turn the fish over every 12 hours, basting the flesh side of each fillet with the accumulated liquid. Replace the pie place with the weights each time.
To serve, slice the Gravlax thinly on the diagonal off the skin. Make the sauce: Combine all the ingredients well; add salt and pepper to taste. Serves 6. In serving as hors d’oeuvre, we always use a bit of sweet onion and often capers.
This is probably far more info than an experienced gourmet chef - Alfred - will need or want.
Fillet or have filleted a 4 - 5 lb salmon, leaving skin on, and remove bones. Mostly, I have taken the “centre cut” fillets from a 7 or 8 lb spring salmon; I have even gone up to similar de-boned length sections from a fish up to 14 lb.
Mix together:
2 ½ cups Sugar
1 ½ cups Salt (rock, kosher or pickling)
1 tablespoon ground black pepper (I use white pepper - about 2 tablespoons)
Rub the fillets all over with the mixture. Lay 2 cups of coarsely chopped fresh dill (including stems) on flesh side of one fillet. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons brandy, aquavit, vodka or other spirits.Lay the other fillet flesh side down on top of the 1st dill-covered fillet. Place in a suitable dish or marinating container. Sprinkle remaining salt/sugar mix and scraps of dill all around. Cover with Saran.Weigh down with bricks or whatever! (3/4 lbs or more)Refrigerate!!
Twice per day, flip over the whole assembly, only opening the pairing to baste the cavity with surplus drawn liquid on bottom plate. Gravlax is done when it is opaque, usually in 3 days, but it can be done in 2 or 4.
Slice thinly, obliquely. Serve - Enjoy -- on French bread with dill or other sauce.- as Gravlax eggs benedict.- experiment!
Note: This is the recipe I have mostly followed. However, you can cut the volume down to 2 Sugar/1 1/2 Salt.)
The Great Scandinavian Cook Book is slightly different:
To each 1 lb of salmon add:
1 oz (2 tablespoons) rock salt
1 oz (2 tablespoons) Sugar
Pinch of Saltpetre
3 White Peppercorns,
crushedPlenty of Dill (or Spruce Twigs)
Refrigerate and weight for 48 hours. They suggest the salmon may also be served with creamed or sautéed spinach, poached eggs or boiled potatoes.
Aunt Fanny’s recipe of May 31, 1981 (deceased Mar 13, 2003, age 97) follows, as she gave it to me and as translated by my cousin. She used more salt than sugar and, being north of the Arctic Circle, she used the perma-frost cellar to keep the Gravlax chilled.
Aunt Fanny’s Gravad Lax
1 part Sugar
2 parts Rock Salt
Sprinkle mixture thinly on the bottom of dish, then lay fish skin-side down. Sprinkle lightly with a layer of salt. Lay flesh to flesh, with dill between every layer. Weight down. In 24 hours, turn over. Let draw for 10 - 12 hours.
Dill Sauce for Salmon
2 1/2 tablespoons hot dry mustard
4 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon rock salt (Sprinkle)
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon vinegar
1/2 cup fresh dill
1 tablespoon cream or sour cream or mayo (optional)
Note: To make the lax and this sauce, I use 2 large bunches of fresh dill from the market, pull the fresh dill for the sauce from the lot, and use the rest for curing - a generous supply!
Gravlax with Grand Marnier Caper Dressing (Another Variation)
For the marinated fish:
3 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon grated orange rind
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon coarsely crushed black pepper
two 1-pound pieces center cut salmon fillet, pin bones removed
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier
For the sauce:
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier
1/4 cup capers
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
Marinate the fish. In a bowl, combine the first four ingredients. Place one of the salmon fillets, skin side down, in a glass pie plate, sprinkling the mixture over it. Drizzle the Grand Marnier over the spice mixture, top the fillet with the remaining fillet, skin side up. Cover the salmon with plastic wrap, set another pie plate on top, weighing it with 3 or 4 food cans. Chill for 3 days. Turn the fish over every 12 hours, basting the flesh side of each fillet with the accumulated liquid. Replace the pie place with the weights each time.
To serve, slice the Gravlax thinly on the diagonal off the skin. Make the sauce: Combine all the ingredients well; add salt and pepper to taste. Serves 6. In serving as hors d’oeuvre, we always use a bit of sweet onion and often capers.
This is probably far more info than an experienced gourmet chef - Alfred - will need or want.
- Sidney Forstrom
