Lox

Ok, I’ve been dying to try the curing method for ages. Today was finally THE DAY!  I was making Gravlax for the very first time, also referred to as Gravlox, Lox and even Lax… Short summary – it was an overall success. [siteorigin_widget class=”WP_Widget_Media_Video”][/siteorigin_widget] I’ve already talked above about the role of salt in the dry cure process. But what about sugar? The role of sugar is mostly to alleviate the harsh flavours of salt and also to promote the growth of good bacteria. It does not add much flavour to the product (except when we talk about bacon). Ok, enough of nerdy facts! Let’s see how to make a simple dry cure on salmon. Ingredients that I’ve used to make Gravlax: 400 g Salmon fillet 80 g Kosher coarse salt 40 g Sugar 1 tbsp Dry bay leaves ½ tsp White peppercorns 1 tbsp Dry onion flakes 1 tsp Dry rosemary 2 Cloves IMPORTANT TIP (what I’ve learned): They say you should keep the skin on fish fillet, when you cure it. Supposedly, it’ll help to hold the shape. Maybe… but I’ve used a salmon fillet with a skin off, and it kept the shape just fine. What’s more important when thinking about the shape of the final product is neat filleting. The fillet that I’ve received from my local supermarket was not very neat. Whoever was working on it, had pulled out the bones in the wrong direction, creating huge holes, that at the end impacted negatively on the overall look and shape of my cured salmon. Salt volume must comprise at least 20% of the fish net weight, in order for the fish to properly cure. Some say to use the same amounts of salt and sugar, but I’ve used only half, based on my logical thinking about the role of sugar in the whole process. At the end, I’m not sure, if I’ve made a right decision. Next time, I will try again with equal amounts of salt and sugar, and I will let you know if there is a difference. The length of time that you should cure your fish for in the fridge depends on the thickness of the fillet. Mine originally was about 2-3 inch, and I will say that 2 days is definitely way too much. 18-24 hours would have been just fine. Thanks for reading this article! I hope you’ve enjoyed it. If you did, please subscribe to my newsletter and also to my YouTube channel. That’s how I will know that I’m doing the right thing 🙂 Also send me your ideas on which culinary technique / dish / cuisine I should learn next. I’m always Up for a challenge!