Gravlax with Dill and Citrus
Salmon buried under salt, sugar, and dill for three days until it cures firm enough to slice paper-thin, no stove required.
- Serves
- 8
- Prep
- 15 min (plus 3 day cure)
- Cook
- 0 min
- Written
Method
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Stir the salt, sugar, and cracked peppercorns together in a small bowl.
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Lay a large sheet of plastic wrap in a baking dish and set the salmon on top, skin-side down.
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Rub the vodka over the flesh if using, then pack the salt mixture evenly over the top, covering every inch.
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Scatter the lemon zest over the cure, then pile the dill on top so it forms its own layer.
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Wrap the salmon tightly in the plastic, set another dish on top, and weigh it down with a couple of cans.
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Refrigerate, turning the parcel over once a day and draining off the liquid that collects, until the flesh feels firm all the way to the center, 2 to 3 days.
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Unwrap the salmon, scrape off the cure and dill, and pat the fillet dry.
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Slice thin on a sharp angle, working away from the skin, and serve cold.
Notes
The weight is doing real work here, not just the salt — pressing the fillet flat forces out moisture evenly so the whole piece cures at the same rate instead of drying at the edges while the center stays raw. Skip it and you’ll get gravlax that’s ready in patches instead of all at once.
Three days gets a fully firm, thinly-sliceable cure; pull it at two if you want something softer and closer to raw in the middle. Whatever’s left keeps wrapped tight in the fridge for about a week, and the trim too ragged to slice thin is still good folded into scrambled eggs.