Gravad Laks med Hovmestersovs

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Shallow non-reactive dish, glass or ceramic, large enough to hold the salmon flat
• •Fine tweezers for pin bones
• •Plastic wrap
• •Heavy weight: a second dish with tins, or a small chopping board with a jar on top
• •Long, very sharp slicing knife
• •Whisk and mixing bowl for the sauce

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the salmon

   Lay the salmon skin-side down on a board and run your fingertips along the length of the flesh. Any pin bones you find, pull out with tweezers. Nothing ruins a thin slice faster than a stray bone. If there is a strip of dark grey flesh running along the skin, trim it away. It is oily and assertive, and the cure wants a clean canvas.

   Ask your fishmonger for sushi-grade salmon, center cut, with the skin left on. The skin holds the fillet together through the cure and the slicing. Without it, the fish falls apart under the knife.
2. 2

   Mix the cure

   In a bowl, combine the coarse salt, the 80g of caster sugar, and the crushed white peppercorns. The ratio matters. Salt draws moisture out of the flesh and firms it. Sugar rounds the salt's edge and balances it so the finished fish tastes silky rather than harsh. White pepper, not black, because white is more floral and it leaves no dark specks on the pink flesh.

3. 3

   Apply the cure

   Place the salmon skin-side down in a shallow non-reactive dish, glass or ceramic, just big enough to hold it. If using aquavit, brush it across the flesh now. Press the cure mixture firmly into the top of the fillet in an even layer, covering every part of the flesh. Then cover the whole surface with the dill, stems and all, in a thick blanket. The dill is not garnish here. It is the third leg of the cure, and it perfumes the flesh while it rests.

   Use the dill generously. More than you think. A thin scatter does nothing. You want a forest.
4. 4

   Wrap and weight

   Wrap the dish tightly in plastic, pressing it down against the dill. Place another dish or a small chopping board on top, and weight it with two heavy tins or a jar of something. The weight is what turns salted salmon into gravad laks. Without it you have cured fish. With it you have the dense, silky texture that makes this dish what it is. Not optional.

5. 5

   Cure for two days

   Refrigerate the weighted fish for 48 hours. Every 12 hours, take it out and turn it over, keeping the cure and dill pressed against the flesh. The fish will release a pool of pinkish brine into the dish. This is exactly what should happen. Turning bathes both sides in that brine and ensures the cure works evenly. This is the joy of waiting. The season decides many things in a Danish kitchen; the clock decides this one.

6. 6

   Make the hovmestersovs

   While you wait, or closer to serving, make the sauce. In a bowl, whisk together the two mustards, the 2 tablespoons of sugar, and the vinegar until smooth. Then, whisking constantly, pour the oil in a thin steady stream until the sauce thickens into an emulsion the consistency of soft cream. This is the same principle as mayonnaise. Add the oil too fast and the sauce will split. Whisk in the chopped dill and season with salt and white pepper. Taste it. It should be sweet, sharp, and heavy with dill, all three at once.

   If you can't find sweet Danish mustard, use a good honey mustard and reduce the sugar by half. The flavor won't be identical but it will be honest.
7. 7

   Rinse and slice

   When the 48 hours are up, unwrap the salmon and scrape off the dill and most of the cure. Rinse the fillet briefly under cold water, just enough to take off the crust, and pat it completely dry with kitchen paper. Place it skin-side down on a board. With a long, very sharp knife held at a shallow angle, almost parallel to the board, start at the tail end and carve long, paper-thin slices away from the skin. Stop at the skin each time. The shallow angle is what gives you the wide, translucent slices that drape like silk. A straight-down cut gives you thick chunks and wastes the fish.

   If the knife drags, it isn't sharp enough. A dull knife tears the flesh and turns the edges ragged. Sharpen before you start.
8. 8

   Assemble and serve

   Spread slices of rugbrod thickly with softened butter, going right to the edges. Drape three or four slices of gravad laks across each piece, overlapping gently so the bread is mostly covered but a dark edge still shows. Spoon a generous pool of hovmestersovs in one corner. Scatter a few extra dill fronds across the top and finish with a grind of white pepper. Serve at once, with a knife and a fork. This is how we greet each other at a Danish table. Tak for mad.

Chef Tips

• •Sourcing is everything here. The salmon is not cooked, only cured, so the quality of the fish is the quality of the finished dish. Buy from a fishmonger you trust and ask for sushi-grade, center cut, skin on. If you are unsure about parasites, freeze the fillet at minus 20C for 24 hours before you start. This is standard practice and does not affect the texture.
• •Dill matters more than you think. Use flat-leaf dill with soft fronds, the brightest green you can find. Tired dill tastes of nothing and leaves the cure flat.
• •Gravad laks keeps well, wrapped tightly in the fridge, for up to five days after curing. Slice it fresh each time rather than slicing the whole side at once. The exposed flesh dries out quickly.
• •To drink alongside: a small cold glass of aquavit, a very cold pilsner, or a dry Riesling. No red wine. The fish is too delicate and the sauce is too sweet.

Advance Preparation

• •Gravad laks cures for 48 hours. Start two days before you plan to serve it. This is a make-ahead dish by nature, and it's one of the reasons it belongs on dinner party menus.
• •The hovmestersovs can be made up to two days in advance and kept in the fridge in a covered jar. Whisk it briefly before serving to bring it back together.
• •Once cured, the salmon keeps for five days wrapped tightly in the fridge. Slice just before serving, never in advance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 180g)