Homemade Gravlax (Smoked Salmon)

Gravlox is a way to make lox in your home and you won't believe how easy it is! It comes out worlds better than store bought and is so exciting to have for breakfast as a side to eggs, in a sandwich in a pasta or even just plain as a snack.

Ingredients:

12 ounce filet salmon, skin removed
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup salt, pink Himalayan
1 bunch fresh parsley (or cilantro, or dill, or a combination)
1 lemon, zested and squeezed
2 tablespoons black peppercorns, whole

Directions:

Add half of the sugar and salt to the bottom of a baking dish (or any glass or ceramic dish) Place fish on top and the other half of the salt and sugar and the rest of the ingredients on top of the fish.
Place plastic wrap on top and something very heavy on top that will press the fish down (a large brick is ideal but you can use a pot with water inside) Let sit in fridge for 2-4 days.
Rinse off fish and slice thinly.

Notes and Tips:

This method of cooking is called curing, where the salt and sugar 'cooks' the fish over time. Homemade lox (gravlox). Be sure to use a really fresh piece of salmon, not frozen.

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5 Comments

Ben July 7, 2023

Hi,

The chef might have compared gravlax with smoked salmon just for people understand a bit what gravlax might be.
Altogether Gravlax isn't smoked salmon just as a reminder for those who arent aware, these are 2 different things. They could be eaten the same way and used for similar recipes though. Flavors, textures, appearance are different and preparation methods are also different. Reply

Howard ma March 24, 2022

Very good, but better it should be called Pickled Salmon, it us not the same as cold Smoked Salmon, Lox. Just as Smoked Nova Salmon, Canadian Smoked , is not Lox, similar but not the same. fey! Reply

Bleika July 16, 2021

Additionally:

You can freeze gravlax (it'll hold for at least 3 months if properly wrapped in alu-foil and a plastic bag).

Before serving, scrape most of the dill off the portion you're preparing, but NEVER rinse it.

It is traditionally served with a honey-mustard-mayo sauce, accompanied with toast. If these are off limits, you could use lemon slices, avocado etc.

Nowadays I never use a recipe for the sauce, but it's basically like this:

Generous and equal parts mayonnaise and sour cream as the base.
Dijon mustard, honey and soy sauce for flavour (there's even a special Honey-mustard from Maillet with perfect proportions)
More dried dill
Mix, cool and enjoy! Reply

Bleika July 16, 2021

I agree with Anonymous; this has nothing to do with smoked salmon (placed in a container and slowly cured with smoke).

This resembles the traditional nordic "gravad lax" (or gravlax), with a few important exceptions:

1) Never use lemon - it will cook the salmon like a peruan "ceviche".
2) The original only calls for (loads of) dill which slightly perfumes the salmon.
Before cutting the salmon into slices, most of the dill is scraped off to avoid its protagonism. NEVER rinse it off.
3) The most practical technique is placing a filet skin side down on a sheet of foil, cover it with the mixture, place another filet on top and fold it tightly.
There's no need to cure the skin; it'll be discarded. This way you'll avoid bruising the flesh.
4) For the best outcome, the pressure should be even. My trick is to place it between 2 cutting boards (or similar), before adding weight on top.
5) Turn it approx. every 12 hours. Reply

Anonymous Toronto ON March 30, 2018

Nice recipe but it isn't "lox" or smoked salmon . Smoked salmon is . . . smoked; gravlax is a different dish altogether. Reply

Homemade Gravlax (Smoked Salmon)

Ingredients:

Directions:

Notes and Tips:

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