Some places are fun to visit to experience the place itself, and some places are fun to visit because of the people there. I love going to Texas to visit my brother and his family (including, in my unbiased opinion of course, the cutest, funniest niece ever to exist), and while there are plenty of good eats to be found, some of the best eats comes from my brother and sister-in-law's own kitchen!
This is one of my family's most requested dishes when we go - cured salmon! My brother will prepare a huge fillet and get plenty of bagels, cream cheese, and various other accompaniments, and we'll feast for a couple of breakfasts/brunches. A just toasted bagel with cured salmon and cream cheese is just so GOOD - salty, creamy, crunchy, satisfying. And my brother is always saying how easy it is to make!
For a really long time, it just seemed so intimidating to me. I always have a lot of questions when it comes to certain dishes in the kitchen that I'm unfamiliar with, and often, I'm asking, "Is this right? How do I know if it's done? How do I know if it's overdone? AUGH RAW MEAT!" But once I took some time off, I decided that this had to be one of the first things to try making.
And my brother was right! This is pretty easy! And hey, if you get queasy handling raw fish, use some gloves - I personally bought a box of a ton of plastic gloves a while ago from a Korean supermarket, and it has lasted forever. So let me tell you what I did...
1. Purchase some boneless, skin-on salmon fillets. I went to Sprouts and chose the farm-raised version since it's fattier than wild salmon. They only had about 3 fillets left (at 1.5 lbs) so I got those, but ended up only using about 1 lb.
2. Grab some sugar, salt, dill, and plastic wrap. Seriously! This is all you need. I usually never have fresh dill on hand, but luckily I had a huge bunch left over from making a roasted vegetable salad recipe from Samin Nosrat (I can't even start talking about her, my food hero, because that would require a whole other blog or two). Mix 1 parts salt to 2 parts sugar. There are other recipes that call for 1:1 ratio, but this is the ratio my brother settled on, and it works for my family's taste rather well. I kind of eyeballed it, but I'd guesstimate that I used about a 1/2 - 3/4 cup salt.
3. Prep. Cut the salmon fillet in such a way that you can use it to sandwich the dill. I had three pieces, so I laid the two smaller ones on the first layer and kept the larger one for the second layer. Lay down a few sheets of plastic wrap, and sprinkle some of the salt/sugar in the middle. Rub some of the mixture on the skin side of the first layer fillet and put on top of the salt/sugar mixture already laid down. Put more of the mixture on the top of the first fillet, followed with the dill, more salt/sugar (rub into the second fillet, then place the second fillet on top with the skin side up). Rub more mixture all over the entire thing, and make sure to get it in the crevices and sides.
3. Wrap and Weight. Wrap the salmon up with the plastic wrap, making sure it's nice and tight. Put it in a container and find a dish/can to place on top to weigh it down. Place in fridge.
4. Flip and Wait! And now the super easy part (or not so easy). Wait! My brother advised to flip the salmon in the plastic wrap 2x per day, but I goofed and only flipped it once per day. It will leak fluid into the container - that's normal! I assembled on Tuesday and unwrapped and started digging in on Sunday, so I think 4-5 days is good. Unwrap, scrape and wash any additional salt/sugar off, and start slicing!
5. Eat and Enjoy. Okay, so maybe THIS is the easy part. I bought some little bagelettes from Publix, cream cheese, and red onion to enjoy this salmon with. Yum! You can also get some avocado, capers, or anything else you like. This is super adaptable, and you'll be able to find other recipes with more flavorings and seasonings if you'd prefer.
One of my concerns when making this is whether or not the salmon would cure correctly and if I'd be responsible for feeding my family ruined, raw salmon. Here's the thing - when you have the raw salmon, look at it. Smell it. Prod at it. Make sure you're familiar with the texture and smell. When you believe the salmon is finished curing, do the same test. It should smell clean and have a firmer texture. Try a tiny piece, and if it tastes like cured salmon, keep eating! (If not, please spit out).
So hopefully if this is something you've wanted to try making, this post encourages you to try it. It's seriously some good eating, and pretty luxurious for a home kitchen breakfast. Let me know if you make it, and how it turned out! Until next time.
- HungryDeb
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