Aquavit Salmon Gravlax with Mustard Dill Sauce
A popular appetizer of Nordic origins, gravlax usually consists of fish fillets cured in salt, sugar and fresh herbs. If aquavit is hard to find at your local liquor store, you can use vodka instead with very similar results. If you are serving a large crowd, this recipe doubles easily. Just make sure to start the recipe at least 2 days before you plan to serve it. You can pair this dish with any of the following: Blue Grouse Rose, 40 Knots Island White Seas, Unsworth Vineyards Pinot Noir or Domaine Houchart Côtes De Provence Rosé.Ingredients
Serves 6-8
1½ lbs (680 g) skin-on salmon fillet
1 tbsp (15 ml) caraway seeds
1 tbsp (15 ml) coriander seeds
2 tbsp (30 ml) granulated sugar
¼ cup (60 ml) kosher salt
½ tsp (2.5 ml) freshly ground black pepper
2 bunches fresh dill
|¼ cup (60 ml) Bornholmer Akvavit
Mustard Dill Sauce, to serve, make ahead, recipe follows
thinly sliced red onions, capers, lemon slices and rye bread, to serve
MUSTARD DILL SAUCE
3 tbsp (45 ml) white vinegar
2 tbsp (30 ml) roughly chopped fresh dill fronds
⅓ cup (80 ml) Dijon
1 tbsp (15 ml) granulated sugar
¼ cup (60 ml) vegetable oil
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Start by making gravlax. Find a baking dish large enough to hold salmon and line it with plastic wrap, leaving lots of overhang. Set aside.
- Rinse salmon under cold water and pat dry with paper towel. Remove pinbones from salmon and set aside.
- To make cure mixture, place caraway and coriander seeds in a frying pan, then set over medium-high heat. Stirring constantly, toast seeds until fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer toasted seeds to a spice grinder or mortar and pestle and grind finely. Transfer ground seeds to a small bowl and stir in sugar, salt and pepper until well combined. Set aside.
- Spread half the dill over bottom of lined baking dish. Generously rub skin side of salmon with about half the cure mixture, then set skin-side down on top of dill. Sprinkle aquavit overtop salmon, then rub it with remaining cure mixture and cover with remaining dill. Tightly wrap salmon fillet with plastic wrap lining baking dish. Top with a weight, such as a smaller baking dish or a plate with some cans of beans on top.
- Transfer weighted dish to refrigerator for 24 hours. Turn salmon over, continue to weigh down and refrigerate for another 24 to 48 hours. A longer cure will result in a firmer texture and a saltier flavour. |When ready to serve, remove salmon from plastic wrap and use back of a knife or a spoon to scrape cure mixture off fish. Place salmon skin-side down on a cutting board. Using a very sharp knife, thinly slice gravlax on bias. |x
- When ready to serve, remove salmon from plastic wrap and use back of a knife or a spoon to scrape cure mixture off fish. Place salmon skin-side down on a cutting board. Using a very sharp knife, thinly slice gravlax on bias.
- Mustard Dill Sauce: In a blender, combine vinegar, dill, Dijon and sugar and blend until dill is very finely chopped. With blender running, slowly stream in oil and blend until a smooth sauce has formed. Season with pepper. Can be stored in an airtight container in refrigerator for up to 1 week. Makes about ¾ cup (180 ml)