Cured salmon recipe with smokey tea

Cured salmon gravlax recipe is the perfect Christmas appetizer to have along with a nice glass of bubbles. It has a mild smokey flavor given from the infusion of the smoked tea and it has a sweet citrus aroma. Better than the one you buy in the store!

A classic northern dish so mouthwatering and yet so simple to make, it only requires 5 minutes of preparation and 4 days of cure in the fridge. Make it along with this festive Butternut squash lasagna and with this traditional yet easy Italian panettone. A perfect festive menu.

This delicious smoked gravlax salmon has a texture that resembles sashimi and it is so tender that melts in the mouth. I love to serve it sliced very thin or into thick slices as sashimi. This is not just excellent for Christmas but it makes a perfect meal for a quick breakfast or brunch.

Why you'll love it

• easy to make
• 10 minutes of actual work
• great make-ahead recipe
• perfect as finger food

WHAT IS GRAVLAX SALMON?

Gravlax salmon is a Scandinavian-style cured with a mix in equal parts of sugar, salt, and seasoning herbs for a few days in the fridge. Usually, gravlax salmon is never smoked. Instead, this cured salmon recipe is made by using coarse sea salt and the leaves of smoked black tea without the result being salty.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED

In just 5 ingredients you can prepare a luxury cured smoked gravlax salmon recipe in no time. Here is what you need:

• Salmon- fresh salmon is the key to obtaining good quality gravlax. Buy fresh salmon with the skin on and from a trustable source. Choose the fillet cut from the center, which can be small or the whole fillet. The thicker the piece of the salmon, the more time it needs to cure.
• Salt- use coarse sea salt to cure the salmon. Don't use table salt or fine one, it will turn out way too salty otherwise.
• Tea leaves- the leaves are sprinkled over the flesh of the fish, this gives a gorgeous smokey flavor to it. Use lapsang souchong tea, a Chinese black tea that is also known as smoked tea. The leaves are withered over pine fires, pan-dried, rolled, and placed in bamboo baskets, and smoked over smoldering pinewood fires. Don't overdo the quantity of the tea leaves as it is quite strong. Just follow my advice.
• Orange- use fresh slices of oranges, place them over the salt crust. It all will give a citrus note to the gravlax.

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTION*

*Note: this is just a quick introduction. Please read the recipe card for the full instructions.

Remove the fishbones

1. Place the salmon on a chopping board, and look for any fishbones. Use tweezers to remove any bones left in the flesh.

Cure the salmon

1. Add a few handfuls of coarse sea salt enough to cover completely the skin of the salmon in a large baking dish.

2. Now spread evenly the leaves of the smoked tea over the flash of the salmon.

3. Add the rest of the coarse sea salt over the salmon. Make sure that the flesh is fully covered and there is no visible pink meat. Cut the orange into slices 1 cm thick and spread them over the coarse sea salt. Cover the salmon with the kitchen cling film and store it in the fridge for 4 days*. When ready remove the salmon from the fridge, scrape off the orange slices, salt, and the tea leaves with a fork, and rinse quickly over cold water, and then dry the fish with a paper towel.

*Note: The time of cure depends on the thickness and how fat is the salmon you have used. This salmon was 3 cm thick and it took 4 days to cure. I advise you to check the salmon after 3 days if it is thinner, on the other hand, if it is thicker let it cure for 5 days. The salmon is ready when touching the skin will feel hard and the flesh of the salmon has a beautiful evenly orange color.

Serve it

1. Place the salmon on a chopping board and, using a very sharp knife, not a dull knife or you will tear the salmon, slice diagonally the salmon and as thinly as you possibly can while holding the blade. As a consequence, you will obtain beautiful slices of cured salmon.

VARIATION/SUGGESTIONS

A word of advice: there are a variety of ways to eat the smoked gravlax salmon, here are some of my favorites.

• Butter- make delicious herbal butter to spread on a toasted slice of bread. Use any herbs you like, my favorites are with dills, chives, tarragon, and pink peppercorn. Take the butter out to soften it up. Now, wash the herb under running cold water and pat them dry with a paper towel. Take just the leaves and chop them very finely, combine them in a bowl with the butter. That's it!!
• Vinaigrette- I love to serve the gravlax salmon with an orange vinaigrette. Use the juice of an orange and add a few spoons of extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt. Mix with a spoon and drizzle the vinaigrette over the slices of the salmon.
• Bread- use slices of toasted rye bread, flatbread, or toasted bagels spread with herbal butter or your favorite spread cheese.
• Cheese- serve the salmon over a slice of toasted bread with some burrata cheese or a dollop of mascarpone or some robiola cheese. Sprinkle over some capers and a few leave dill or chives.
• Salad- try it with boiled potatoes, different types of salads leaves, sliced red onions, tomato cherries, and avocado.

Style it- arrange some dill leaves or some arugula/rocket salad on a serving platter. Place the slices of salmon by curling them as you set them down. Then sprinkle with some pink peppercorn, thin slices of red onions, and a few drops of vinaigrette over the salmon.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Can I use another smoked tea for this cured salmon recipe?

To be fair, I never try it with different smokey tea. However, if you can't find Lapsang Souchong, I would use the smokey earl grey or any other smoked black tea. Use always loose tea leaves as the tea on teabags are often of lower quality and also crushed into something more similar to powder.

Can I use table fine sea salt instead of coarse sea salt?

No, I wouldn't swap the coarse sea salt over the table fine sea salt. Doing that will lead to a super salty gravlax salmon.

How to store the leftover?

Store the leftover in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Can I freeze the cured salmon gravlax?

I don't suggest you freeze the gravlax salmon.

How much time does the salmon need to cure for?

Usually, the cured salmon will be ready in 4 days. Although, the time of cure depends on the thickness and how fat is the salmon you have used. I recommend you to check the salmon after 3 days if it is thinner, on the other hand, let it cure for 5 days if it is thicker.

📖 Recipe

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