Norwegian recipe
How to make Gravlaks
All of Norway and the Nordic countries
Raw salmon cured for a day or more in salt, sugar and dill, then sliced thin and served with a sweet mustard and dill sauce on bread or with potatoes. The name means 'buried salmon', from the old way of burying salted fish.
Ingredients
- 1 kg very fresh salmon fillet, skin on, bones removed, sold as safe to eat raw or frozen first
- 4 tablespoons coarse salt
- 4 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon crushed white or black pepper
- A large bunch of fresh dill, chopped
- For the sauce: 3 tablespoons mild mustard, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 100 ml oil, chopped dill
Method
- Safety first: this is raw, cured fish. Freezing kills parasites but not all germs, and pregnant women, young children, older people and anyone with a weakened immune system should avoid it.
- Mix the salt, sugar and pepper.
- Cut the fillet in two pieces. Rub the mixture into the flesh and cover with dill.
- Put one piece skin side down in a dish, lay the other on top skin side up, cover with film and put a light weight on top.
- Leave in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, turning the fish once a day and spooning the juices over it.
- Scrape off the dill and salt, slice thinly at an angle and serve with the sauce, made by whisking the mustard, sugar and vinegar, then the oil and dill.
Made it at home? Tick it off and it goes into your kitchen passport.
In 1985 a Norwegian campaign called Project Japan set out to sell Norwegian salmon to Japan. Over the following years raw salmon became a favourite sushi topping there and then around the world.
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