Gravlax Sashimi

Updated February 23, 2016

Chef

Cookbook

Nigella Express

Published by Hyperion

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This image courtesy of Joseph DeLeo

This was not intended to be the Swedish portion of the book, but it occurred to me after making some gravlax a Christmas or so ago that the method would be a very good way of curing a piece of salmon to create fear-free sashimi at home. Obviously, as well as having some Japanese flavors — the wasabi and sake, and no dill — this is a completely effort-free take on what can be a little fiddly. You can buy the piece of salmon at the supermarket, along with the flavorings, and everything goes in a dish in the fridge and is just left there for three days, and up to five. It makes a different kind of supper and a very good one: You can eat it as if it were Scandinavian, along with rye bread and gherkins, or as here, with more of a nod to its Japanese association, with sushi rice, pickled ginger, and a blob or two of wasabi.

Serves8

Cooking Methodcuring

CostModerate

Easy

Total Timea day or more

Make Ahead RecipeYes

One Pot MealYes

OccasionBuffet, Cocktail Party

Recipe Coursecold appetizer, hors d'oeuvre, main course

Five Ingredients or LessYes

Mealdinner, lunch, snack

Moodadventurous

Taste and Texturehot & spicy, light, salty

Ingredients

1 lb skinless salmon fillet
3 tablespoons kosher salt
3 tablespoons sugar
1½ tablespoons sake
1 tablespoon wasabi

Instructions

Put the salmon in a glass dish.
Mix the salt, sugar, sake, and wasabi paste in a little bowl and smear half of it over the salmon. Turn the salmon over and smear over the rest.
Cover the dish with plastic wrap, making sure you press down on the salmon and in the corners before bringing it over and down the sides of the dish.
Place cans of vegetables or unopened jars of pickles on the salmon to weight it and put everything in the fridge for at least 2 days and up to 5.
When you want to eat it, remove the salmon from the dish and wipe it with paper towels. Put it on a board and cut down into strips, then cut each strip into 2 or 3 pieces to make sashimi-suitable shapes.