Asian Style Gravlax Recipes

BAGELS WITH JAPANESE-ISH FIXINGS RECIPE

Steps:

• Use a spoon or spatula to mix the cream cheese and aonori together in a bowl. This will keep, covered, in the fridge for a few days.
• Using tweezers, carefully remove any pin bones from the salmon fillet. Find a deep baking dish or plastic container that holds the fish snugly.
• Combine the sugar, salt, and shiso in a bowl. Sprinkle a 1/2-inch layer of the mixture in the baking dish and lay the salmon on top, skin side down. Pack the fish in the rest of the salt-sugar-shiso mixture and cover loosely with a large piece of plastic wrap. You need to weight down the salmon, which you can go about in a couple different ways: A) If you have a dish or container that is slightly smaller than the one the salmon is sitting in, set the smaller container on top of the fish and weight it down with a few cans or a brick; B) Alternatively, fill a large zip-top bag three-quarters full with cold water and seal. Nestle the bag over the piece of fish. If the bag hangs over the sides of the baking dish, pour out some of the water and reseal. In either case, wrap the whole apparatus tightly in plastic wrap and allow the fish to cure in the refrigerator for 1 day.
• After a day, unwrap the fish and flip it over, being sure all the flesh comes into contact with the curing mix (which should be mostly liquid at this point). Weight the fish down again and wrap it again in fresh plastic. Cure in the fridge for 3 or 4 more days, depending on the thickness of your fillet. The gravlax is ready when the fish is firm to the touch.
• Wipe the cure off the salmon and wrap it in clean plastic wrap. Refrigerate until ready to serve. It will keep for up to a week.
• Pulse the dried onion in a food processor or spice grinder five times, or until powdery. Transfer to a bowl, add the remaining ingredients, and stir well. Store in an airtight container for up to a couple weeks. Give it a good shake before serving.
• Working in batches, use a mortar and pestle, food processor, or spice grinder to pulverize the katsuobushi flakes into a fine powder. Transfer to a bowl, add the remaining ingredients, and stir well. Store in an air-tight container for up to a week.
• Set out a spread of the sliced bagels and toppings and let people do as they please.

CHINESE STYLE GRAVLAX(CURED SALMON)

Steps:

• Place the salmon fillet, skin side down, on a rimmed baking sheet(if aluminum, line with plastic wrap) or large flat platter.
• Combine the sugar, pepper-salt, and black pepper, and sprinkle evenly over the fish.
• Scatter the ginger julienne and cilantro evenly on top.
• Cover with plastic wrap.
• Place another baking sheet over the salmon. weight it down with a 3-5 pound weight.
• Refrigerate for at least 24 hours, or for better flavor, up to 3 days.
• Every 8-10 hours, drain off any liquid that collects in the bottom of the pan.
• To serve, discard the ginger and cilantro.
• Slice the gravlax very thinly on the diagonal with a long and thin bladed sharp knife.

ASIAN STYLE GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Place the salmon on a baking sheet. In a small bowl, combine salt, sugar, chile flakes, and five spice powder. Mix well. Spread the gingerroot over top and bottom of the salmon. Cover salmon with spice mixture on both sides. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 days, or until the fish is firm to the touch.
• To serve, slice the salmon as thinly as you can with a very sharp knife(removing the slices of ginger).Serve cold with French bread and creme fraiche mixed with wasabi paste. Enjoy!

GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Cure the salmon: Lay salmon skin-side down, flesh-side up in a glass or stainless-steel baking dish. (A large lasagna dish works well.) In a small bowl, toss together the salt, sugar and pepper until blended. Sprinkle the mixture over the salmon evenly, with abandon, until fully covered, as if under a blanket of snow. Use all of it.
• Spread all the chopped dill on top of the cure-covered salmon to make a thick, grassy carpet.
• Lay plastic wrap or parchment paper over the salmon to cover and press down, then place a heavy weight - such as a 2-gallon zip-top bag filled with water - on top, to weigh heavily on the curing fish. Refrigerate just like this, without disturbing, for 5 days, turning the salmon over midway through the cure - on Day 3 - then covering and weighting it again.
• To serve, mix together the softened butter, dill, shallot and mustard until well blended.
• Remove salmon from the cure, which has now become liquid, brushing off the dill with a paper towel, then set fillet on a cutting board.
• With a long, thin, beveled slicing knife tilted toward the horizon, slice salmon thinly, stopping short of cutting through the skin. Generally, you begin slicing a few inches from the tail end and you slice in the direction of the tail, moving your knife back, slice by slice, toward the fatter, wider belly portion of the fillet. The last slices are always hard to get. Once you have shingled the fillet, run your knife between skin and flesh, releasing all the slices, then transfer them to parchment until ready to serve.
• Spread the compound butter on bread, then drape sliced gravlax on top, and eat as open-faced sandwiches.