Pretty much any time my family and I get together, my dad makes his salmon gravlax. It is SO good. This was on the menu of our family recipe for at least 30 years and far and away one of the most popular appetizers. Every time I post it, I get asked for the recipe. I don’t want this to set a precedent (my dad is/was a professional chef so a lot of his recipes are complex and I don’t think he’d be crazy about me posting them all over the Internet). I always want to be respectful of my family and their preferences on what I share and don’t share here. Lucky for us, he gave me permission to post this one. I will also just add that this one is so easy that even I can handle it. ENJOY.
Also – you can halve the recipe if you’d like. On Saturday he only used 1 pound and it was the perfect size for the five of us (and one toddler) to share.
My dad’s Salmon Gravlax Recipe
Making the Gravlax
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs salmon (high quality)
- 1/4 cup kosher salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 6 tablespoons cracked pepper
- 1/2 cup dill
Directions:
- Combine salt/sugar/pepper/dill mixture.
- On a cookie sheet or baking dish (something with a lip, not a plate – a lot of liquid will come out!), place salmon skin side down; spread mixture over it.
- Cover with saran wrap and weight it with 1-2 lbs.
- Refrigerate.
- After 1 day, flip salmon to be skin side up, recover, and re-weight.
- After 2 days, wash it off, dry it with paper towels, slice and serve.
Accompaniments
Make the Sauce:
The sauce recipe is super simple. Combine 1/2 cup mayo (we prefer avocado mayo), 2 tbsp grain mustard, and lots of fresh chopped dill.
Serving suggestions:
Serve with toast, capers, and chopped red onion. We also like Carr’s water crackers.
PS – some of my favorite make-ahead appetizers for all your holiday gatherings!!!
It seems super delicious . I love salmon in every way and form ahah
Miki x
https://www.littletasteofbeauty.com/
me too!
Cameroun
Hi Grace! Thanks for sharing this recipe! What does it mean to “weight it with 1-2lbs”? Does that mean put something that weighs 1-2 pounds on top of it?
yup!
you can weight it anyway you want but i like to put a smaller pan over it and then some seltzer cans over that. my dad used beer cans the other day.
This sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing your dad’s recipe. I will make this for sure on my next family brunch.
hope you love it!
So do you buy just regular salmon from the fish counter since the recipe says it has skin on? I’m learning, I always assumed gravlax was smoked salmon but I guess not? This looks so good!!!
yup!!! good, high quality salmon like you’re going to cook it. gravlax and smoked salmon are two totally different things, (cured vs smoked) i googled it for you 🙂 https://www.foodandwine.com/cooking-techniques/differences-between-gravlax-lox-and-smoked-salmon-and-how-make-all-three
I was just going to ask you if it was smoked or cured . I know living in Brooklyn too growing up I was used to bagels and lox and onion with a tomato . I think it was Nova very expensive now .
Thank you Grace’s dad! This looks incredible and how special to share your family recipe!
enjoy!!
My dad made his own gravlox all the time. Although he wasn’t a professional chef (although he did do some charity events with local chefs in the Bay Area) he was as skilled as any of them. He’s been gone two months now. I miss his kitchen wisdom .
thank you for a lovely memory.
I love that. Sending you love, and happy it brought back a great memory.
Sounds so yummy!! Thank you Grace! I love Salmon ! ❤️
me too!
Hi Grace – looks delicious. Do you discard the skin when you serve it? Is it hard to remove? Thank you!
Yup, you just cut it off when you slice it up! Not hard to remove (as long as you have a good knife of course!)
Love this!!
xoxoxoxxoox