I started making a citrus-cured gravlox more than 10 years ago after seeing Emeril Lagasse do it on Food Network. I modified it after seeing Marcus Samuelson doing a more traditional dill-cured gravlox.
I have played with the cure, the length of time I cure the salmon, adding squeezed juice from the fruit, the sizes of the filets, etc. Pretty much, it comes out great everytime if you follow a few rules.
1. Always rinse the salmon well after the cure and let it soak for at least a half hour.
2. Don't eat it all as you are slicing it. Otherwise, there will be none to share with family and friends.
I am inserting my current recipe. I didn't take pix of the cure being put together. Really, just follow the recipe. A monkey can do it if I can do it. (In our household I am only permitted to chop, shlep for ingredients, grill, sharpen knives, and make gravlox.)
Josh Bahoff’s Citrus-Cured Gravlox
2/3 cup kosher salt
½ cup sugar
Zest of 3 lemons, 3 limes, 3 oranges (use a good zester for
this or it takes forever)
1 bunch dill, chopped
3 Tablespoons Black Peppercorns
a bissel vodka (~2 tablespoons) for shpritzing
2 1 ½ to 2 1/2 lb.
Salmon fillets (they should be fresh and schmaltzy)
Juice of one of the zested oranges and lemons, not the
limes.
1. Zest
the lemons, limes and oranges.
2. Add
salt, sugar, peppercorns, and chopped dill to zest. Mix them well.
3. Lay
out the two salmon filets next to each other, skin side down. (no pin bones)
4. Sprinkle
the vodka over each and squeeze on the juice from a lemon and orange.
5. Pile
the curing shmutz (zests, etc.) over one filet.
6. Put
2nd filet over 1st so that it’s flesh to flesh with the
bottom filet (with shmutz in between. Be
sure ends are covered with the shmutz too).
7. Cover
tightly with plastic wrap and then with heavy aluminum foil.
8. Put
in a large roasting dish, cover with a
smaller one and weight it down.
9. Put
in refrigerator for 3 days, turning every 12 hours.
10. Take out,
rinse it off with running water for a few minutes. Then soak in cold water at least 30 minutes,
changing the water every 10 minutes.
11. Cut into 4
or 5 pieces, freezing the ones you won’t use
12. Slice
thinly across the grain.
13. ENJOY!!
The salmon has had the cure applied to the flesh, two sides have been put together flesh sides facing each other. The juices squeezed over the cue along with the vodka. The whole deal has been wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, then wrapped in heavy duty aluminum foil.
By putting some paper towels over the foil, you'll save some mess when you flip the salmon and later clean the trays.
The gravlox it weighted with another tray filled with whatever you have readily available.
The trays are placed in the refrigerator. This is a cold cure. Flip the salmon every 12 hours. ( I flip it once after 24 hours, again 24 hours later, then again 12 hours later.
There's liquid that comes out of the cure starting within 12 hours. You can drain it off before flipping.
The aluminum foil is removed.
The plastic wrap is opened, the salmon with cure is exposed. Scrape off the cure.
Put the salmon in the sink and rinse well until all the shmutz is off.
Soak the gravlox with cold water for at least 30-40 minutes, changing the water every 10 minutes.
Put the skin side down on paper to drain. Get a very sharp knife. I use a Cutco salmon knife. I used to use my grandfathers fileting knife, but it was hard to sharpen and he never showed me how to do it. I miss him.
Start slicing on an angle on the small end. When you get farther up the fish, start going toward the sides so you won't geet as much of the brown stuff.
Save a little plate for small bits of immediate gratification.
You can serve this lots of ways. Tonight it will be served with bagels instead of regular lox.
