Gravlax Made Easier (and Brighter!)

fig. a: three amigos

It started with the Three Amigos: lemon, lime, and orange.

I crave citrus all winter long. I always have, but in recent years it’s become an even more essential part of my winter survival kit. And during a pandemic winter, what we might call the urgency of citrus grew considerably. Since December, when we picked up our first case of Spanish clementines, we’ve been on one helluva citric kick.

Miraculously, we haven’t maxed out yet. This in spite of the fact that lemons, limes, and oranges have been in countless ways, both savoury and sweet, as well as in the form of juices and cordials. In fact, the range of citrusy things I’ve been craving seems to be expanding as the first hints of spring have arrived. With artichokes? Yes, please. On asparagus? Why, thank you very much. Gracing a green salad? Absolutely. Zested and sprinkled on fish? Might as well.

Which is how I came to make a recipe for Citrus-Cured Salmon (a.k.a., Citrusy Gravlax) that I’d noted and admired in an old issue of Bon Appétit. My need for yet another citrus fix kicked in one day recently, I started flipping through my mental Rolodex, and I suddenly remembered the image of a bright, citrusy, beautifully cured gravlax that I’d once seen. A little digging around ensued, and…

fig. b: “…a bright, citrusy, beautifully cured gravlax that I’d once seen.”

It appeared in BA’s 2016 Travel Issue (page 140 of the May issue, to be exact) and it accompanied a piece about a remote restaurant (on stilts!) that sits on Ismailof Island in Alaska’s Halibut Cove called The Saltry. It’s a seasonal operation, only open from Memorial Day to September, and it appears to still be going strong. And one of the specialties of the house at the time was an unusual—and unusually tasty—citrusy gravlax.

It’s also unusually quick and easy to make. You might recall that I posted a recipe for gravlax back in December that claimed, “it’s as easy as they come.” Well, this one’s even easier. No joke. The cure-to-fish ratio is relatively high, which allows the curing process to be a little faster than usual—24-36 hours, as opposed to the 3-5 days that’s common with gravlax recipes.

The only real challenges here are tracking down a beautiful salmon fillet (preferably wild king—or, even better, organic wild king), gathering together a few spices, and making sure you’ve got those Three Amigos on hand.

The transformation is remarkable. Take a look!

fig. c: before

fig. d: after

And the finished product is both phenomenally beautiful, and incredibly delicious.

It’s remarkable what a little citrus zest can do. This gravlax sings with a citrus zing.

Citrus-Cured Salmon (a.k.a., Citrusy Gravlax)

5 oz kosher salt (1 cup Diamond Crystal or 1/2 cup Morton’s)

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar

1 tsp black peppercorns

1 tsp coriander seeds

1 tsp fennel seeds

1/2 crushed red pepper flakes

1 x 1 lb skin-on, boneless salmon fillet, preferably wild king

1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest

1/2 tsp finely grated lime zest

1/2 tsp finely grated orange zest

Grind the pepper, coriander seeds, fennel seeds, and pepper flakes in a spice mill, leaving them slightly coarse.

Then mix the salt, sugar, brown sugar, and the spice blend together in a bowl.  This is your curing mixture

Line a rimmed baking sheet with a large sheet of foil (it needs to be large enough to wrap around your salmon completely).  Spread half the curing mixture in the centre of the foil-lined baking sheet.  Place your 1 lb. salmon fillet, skin-side down, on top.  Scatter the zests over the fish; then cover the fish with the rest of the curing mixture, piling it up against the sides of the fish so they get cured too. 

Bring the foil up and over the salmon and crimp to create a sealed envelope.  Top with a 2-gallon zip-top bag filled with water, or some other kind of similarly weighty object, keeping in mind that you’ll have to find enough room in your refrigerator to place the ensemble.  Chill in the refrigerator for 24-36 hours, making sure to unwrap the fish, flip it skin-side up, and re-wrap it once during that span of time (preferably halfway through).  

When the fish is fully cured (after at least 24 hours), rinse it of most of the cure and pat dry, then place skin-side down on a cutting board.  Using your longest, sharpest knife cut on a diagonal 1/8-1/4” thick, leaving the skin behind, and wiping down the blade with a moist towel between slices if need be.

Serve with rye bread, or bagels, or blini, or matzah, or pile onto a citrusy salmon version of Eggs Benedict.  You get the picture. 

Whatever you do, take the time to enjoy this bright, beautiful ray of sunshine. We could all use a little more light.

aj

Out of the Archives 1: Keep It Simple (June 2008)

Editor's note:  Thus begins a new series called Out of the Archives.  The idea is to regularly dig deep into our vaults, sift through over 10 years' worth of "...an endless banquet" posts (!), and dust off some old favourites.  

Without any further ado, here's a post that first appeared on Sunday, June 15, 2008, and is perfect for the summertime grilling season.

'Cause I'm easy, yeah, I'm easy...--Keith Carradine, "I'm Easy," Nashville (1975), dir. Altman

I guess if you always have access to the best quality meat, well, then you can be as adventurous as you want with it. Kind of like cooking with wine--I'm sure everything tastes even better if you happen to be in a position to cook with high-quality wines, but most of us have had limited experience (if any) with doing so. As a result, when we, here at "...an endless banquet," get our hands on really good meat, our tendency is to, yes, keep it simple (just as when we get our hands on a really good bottle of wine our tendency is to, well, drink it--we're kind of old-fashioned like that). The point is, in both cases, we want to really taste the difference.

So when we were lucky enough to get a gorgeous pork rib roast that had been sourced, slaughtered, and dressed by a friend of ours (!),* we turned to our friends from London's River Café to give us a little guidance on pork and minimalism.

fig. a:  CA COOK BOO

If you're not familiar with Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers' River Cafe Cook Book Easy and Italian Two Easy: Simple Recipes from the London River Cafe, you love Italian and Italian-inspired cuisine, and you're a believer in keeping it simple, well, you really ought to be. As the titles suggest, most of their recipes require a minimum of ingredients, a minimum of time, or a minimum of effort, and some fall under all three categories. Some of our favorites contain literally three ingredients and take just minutes to prepare. Seriously. And don't let the vaguely glam cover of River Cafe Cook Book Easy throw you: the minimalism of the content is mirrored by the minimalism of the books' design. Virtually every photograph is taken from directly overhead, and many feature a stark white background. Seriously, minimally perfect.

fig. b:  yellow on black

The one we chose on this particular occasion requires two ingredients, just a few more if you make a salsa verde to go along with it (and we highly recommend that you do).

Pork chops with lemon

4 pork chops
1 lemon

Preheat a large cast-iron pan over medium-high heat. Preheat the oven to 400º F (200º C/Gas 6).

Season each chop generously with salt and pepper (okay, you need two more ingredients), put the chops in the pan and sear them on each side quickly, no more than 30 seconds per side. Take the pan off the heat.

Cut the lemon in half. Squeeze the lemon juice over the chops, and place the squeezed lemon halves in the pan along with chops. Roast in the oven for 10 minutes. Press the lemon halves on to the chops and baste with the juice. Roast for another 10 minutes or until firm to the touch.

note: if you don't have a cast-iron pan that's large enough to fit four chops, sear them in batches in a cast-iron pan, and then transfer them to a preheated oven tray and continue with the recipe above.

[recipe from River Cafe Cook Book Easy]

Now, the oven recipe works like a charm, but it being BBQ season, a few weeks ago we decided to adapt the above recipe for the grill.

We rubbed a little bit of olive oil into the chops before generously seasoning them. We took a small cast-iron pan, added a tablespoon of olive oil to it, and brought it out to the barbecue with us, and we cooked the lemon halves in the pan on the grill while we grilled the meat over a hot flame. Before flipping the chops we used tongs to pick up a lemon half and rub it all over the chops. Total cooking time was almost the same as above and we tried to flip the chops as little as possible. The lemons got nice and caramelized and we served them alongside the chops and drizzled a little of the delicious sauce they'd created overtop.

When we started our chops looked like this:

fig. c:  the raw...

When we finished cooking them they looked like this:

fig. d:  ...and the cooked

And minutes later they'd been picked clean.

This recipe really doesn't need anything additional--the flavors are honest and clean and pretty much perfect as is. All you really need to finish the ensemble is a vegetable side, a salad, and a glass of wine. But, if you wanted to dress them up just a little, you can't go wrong with this salsa verde:

Salsa Verde

2 tbsp parsley leaves
1 tbsp mint leaves
1 tbsp basil leaves
extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove
1 tbsp capers
3 anchovy filets (1 or 2 will do, if you're using salt-packed)
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
black pepper to taste

Finely chop the herbs, put into a bowl and cover with olive oil. Chop the garlic with the capers and the anchovies. Add to the herbs and mix together. Stir in the mustard and vinegar, season with black pepper and add more olive oil to loosen the sauce.

Serve a spoonful over your chops. Also excellent with steaks--grilled or roasted.

[recipe from River Cafe Cook Book Easy]

aj

* Merci, Sam Pinard.