Cured Salmon

Cured salmon, also known as Gravlox, smoked salmon (without the smoke), lox or nova scotia salmon can easily be made in one's own kitchen with very few ingredients and very little effort. A pound of lox or nova can cost upwards of $30.00/lb. Make it at home for half the price!

Go to your trusty fish monger and buy a piece of salmon that is preferably wild-caught with a generous amount of fat. Have him/her slice a piece from the middle (not towards the head or tail) and its important to leave the skin on. Here is my piece of salmon ready to be cured and with the ingredients needed for the process:



Ingredients

1 pound wild-caught salmon (Norwegian or Alaskan preferred)
2 T kosher salt
1 T granulated sugar

Directions

Place salt and sugar in a ziplock bag and shake. Put salmon in bag and place on a plate in the refrigerator. Place another plate atop salmon and then weigh the top plate down (I weighed in down with a gallon of milk). Let sit, turning the bag occasionally at least for 24 hours. After salmon has cured, remove from refrigerator and bag. Rinse the salmon under cold water and then pat dry with paper towels. Once the salmon is dry, rub some vegetable oil over the top. Then slice as needed. I like to use a cheese knife to slice the salmon - works best here. Whatever knife is used, it must be sharp and slice the salmon horizontally.

Ready to be placed in the refrigerator:

Finished curing: