Barneys King Salmon Gravlax Recipes

BARNEY'S KING SALMON GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Combine sugar, salt, and peppercorns in a bowl and mix well. Sprinkle about 1/3 of the mixture over the bottom of a glass baking dish. Place 1 salmon fillet on top, skin-side down. Sprinkle 1/2 the dill on top. Cover with another 1/3 of the sugar mixture. Sprinkle remaining dill on the second fillet and place skin-side up on top of the first fillet. Cover with remaining sugar mixture.
• Wrap baking dish tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 18 hours. Turn fillets over and spoon the syrupy liquid over fish before covering again with plastic wrap. Refrigerate another 18 hours.
• Rinse fillets lightly in cold water to remove salt. Pat dry. Slice fish thinly at an angle.

SALMON GRAVLAX WITH BUCKWHEAT BLINI

Steps:

• Remove the zest of the lemon with a vegetable peeler in fat strips and toss it in a bowl. Add the salt, sugar, white peppercorns, and dill; rub all the ingredients together with your hands to release the oils in the zest and dill. Lay the fish out on a large sheet pan or glass baking dish. Pack the salt mixture on top of and around the salmon. Cover with another sheet pan and place a brick or heavy can weight on top to press out the moisture from the salmon. Refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours to cure the fish. Scrape the salt mixture off the salmon and lightly rinse the fish under cool water; pat dry with paper towels. The cured salmon will be firm but pliable.
• To set up the presentation, lay the salmon on a large wooden cutting board. (The whole fish looks great as a center piece on the table, so only slice a quarter of the gravlax at a time.) With a very sharp knife slice the salmon New York Deli-style; paper-thin on a slight angle. Serve the cured salmon with the blini, the dill creme fraiche, and radish-lime salsa on the side. This is an interactive hors d'oeuvre: let your friends attack it, then slice more as needed.
• To prepare the blini, in a large bowl, proof the yeast in the warm milk for 10 minutes, stirring to dissolve. In another large bowl, sift the all-purpose flour, buckwheat flour, salt, and sugar together. Make a well in the center and pour in the yeast mixture, melted butter, and egg yolks (reserve the whites) and whisk until smooth. Cover with a towel and let it rise in a warm place for 1 1/2 hours.
• Just before you are ready to cook the blini, beat the egg whites until stiff, then fold them into the batter. Place a griddle or non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and brush it with a little melted butter. Pour 1 tablespoon of the batter into the pan, to make pancakes about 3 inches in diameter. Cook for about 30 seconds, then flip them over with a spatula and cook another 30 seconds. Stack the blini on a platter and wrap them in a cloth napkin to keep them warm.
• Mix all ingredients together in a bowl until combined.
• Yield: 3/4 cup
• Put all the salsa ingredients in a food processor and pulse 5 times to combine. Put it in a bowl and serve.
• Yield: 2 1/2 cups

GRAVADLAX

Steps:

• Pat the salmon dry with kitchen paper and run your hands over the flesh to see if there are any stray small bones - if there are, use a pair of tweezers to pull them out. Set the salmon fillets aside.
• Tip the salt, sugar, peppercorns, lemon zest, juniper and dill into a food processor and blitz until you have a bright green, wet salt mixture or 'cure'. Unravel some cling film but keep it attached to the roll. Lay the first fillet of salmon skin-side down and then pack the cure over the flesh. Drizzle with gin, if using and top with the 2nd fillet, flesh-side down. Roll the sandwiched fillets tightly in cling film to create a package.
• Place the fish in a shallow baking dish or shallow-sided tray and lay another tray on top. Weigh the tray down with a couple of tins or bottles and place in the fridge for at least 48 hrs or up to 4 days, turning the fish over every 12 hours or so. The longer you leave it, the more cured it will become.
• To make the sauce, tip all the sauce ingredients into a blender. Blitz until you have a thickened dressing.
• To serve, unwrap the fish and brush off the marinade with kitchen paper. Rinse it if you like. You can slice the fish classically into long thin slices, leaving the skin behind, or remove the skin it and slice it straight down. Serve the sliced fish on a large platter or individual plates with pumpernickel bread, dill and mustard sauce.

EASY SALMON GRAVLAX

Steps:

• Remove the zest of the lemon with a vegetable peeler in fat strips and toss in a bowl. Add the salt, sugar and dill and crush or "muddle" them together using a mortar or a big wooden spoon to release the oils in the lemon rind and the flavor of the dill.
• Select a sheet pan with sides that will hold the fish, line it with plastic wrap and place the fish in the sheet pan. Pack the salt mixture on top of and around the salmon. Cover with plastic wrap and place another sheet pan of the same size on top of the fish. Cover a large concrete paving brick that fits in your pan with plastic wrap (to protect your pan) and place it on top of the top pan to compress the fish to press the moisture out of the fish. Refrigerate for 36 to 48 hours depending on the thickness to cure the fish. Scrape the salt mixture off the salmon and lightly rinse the fish under cool water, pat dry with paper towels. You can serve the whole gravlax at a party on a cutting board, or slice into 4 inch sections and vacuum seal and refrigerate until you need them.