Green Tea Infused Gravlax; When You've Got A Piece of Fish To Spare

Just the other day I bought a huge piece of salmon fillet thinking I would cook it for a group of friends. But then the happening didn’t happen. So I was left with my fresh piece of fish not knowing what to do with it. I could’ve cut it into pieces and frozen it, but I find it sad to freeze a nice piece of fish or meat… because it’s never as good as when it’s fresh! Since I’m pregnant and about to burst, I can’t get into the tartar thing (raw fish is sadly forbidden to pregnant women), which is normally what I would’ve done. So I got a flash genius (so I believe!) and decided I would make a nice big piece of gravlax.

Gravlax, for the unfamiliar, is a Swedish way of preserving and infusing taste to fish by curing it into a mixture of salt and sugar. Dill is the usual flavor used for such a method but you can try to be creative and add a few flavors such as orange or lemon and, as such is the case here, tea!

I personally can’t get enough of salmon. It’s like chicken, I’m never sick of it. Any way you serve it it’s bound to be tasty… unless you overcook the poor thing. The good thing about gravlax is that you can keep it for a good week in the fridge and add it to anything you like, any way you like it. Be creative. And get your dose of Omega-3 at the same time!

GREEN TEA INFUSED GRAVLAX

INGREDIENTS

500 g salmon fillet, skin on

4 tbsp coarse sea salt

4 tbsp sugar

1 ½ tbsp fresh dill

2 tbsp black pepper

2 tbsp green tea leaves

Grated zest of 2 lemons

2 tbsp vodka

PREPARATION

In a small bowl, mix together the salt, sugar, pepper, tealeaves, lemon zest and vodka. On a baking sheet covered with cheesecloth, evenly spread half of the mixture.

Place the salmon filet on the mixture, skin side down. Cover the salmon with the rest of the mixture.

Wrap the salmon tightly in the cheesecloth and press down with a heavy pan or a cutting board. Cover and refrigerate for 48 hours, flipping the salmon every 12 hours.

Unwrap the fish and rinse well under cold water. Dry with Scott towels.

Placing the fish skin side down, cut thin slices, diagonally. You can serve it as you like… Here are a few ideas: for brunch, in a bagel with cream cheese; for cocktail, on small blinis with sour cream; as a snack, on rye bread with goat cheese, for lunch, in a salad, etc!